Her Crystal Ball
by Matron of Madness
Summary: One's a crazy business fox with a cool personality. The other is a generous shoe-shiner who radiates sweetness. The only thing they have in common? They're both chasing after the oblivious fortune teller. Just... with different approaches.
1. Late Night Surprise

I don't own Animal Crossing, or any of it's characters!

* * *

–

Sunday  
9:00 A.M.  
Carniven City

–

* * *

Katrina tinkered with her crystal ball, setting it on top of her desk with a swift motion. One would think she'd stop being late to work with how serious she took it, but it wasn't like she had many costumers anyways. Well.. that may be a lie, but still.

Katrina was the fortune teller who worked in Carniven City, every day, from 9:00 A.M. -to- 9:00 P.M. She was famous, all across the world, different animals came to get her readings every now and again, once a month at the most. Charms were once a week, really. She wasn't quite sure how or why, but somehow, she always managed to tell their future with dead-on accuracy.

Smoothing down her black fur, the cat took a seat in front of her small desk and placed her hands on the crystal ball, which stood on a tiny pedestal. Soon enough, she heard a knock at her door. Blinking, she smiled brightly, bringing her mystic voice into play. "Please enter."

Now this was new. A human girl with bright blue hair pulled into a bun, wearing a design she could peg as the tuxedo from GracieGrace, and a beautiful set of Mint Glasses walked in. She made a note to check in with some fashion tailors for those glasses. The girl had obviously just gotten her shoes shined, they almost made a glare out of the dim lights in her building. Kicks knew what he was doing..

The girl walked up to her and smiled. "U-Um, hello there! I heard your a fantastic fortune teller.. and well.." She trailed off, placing a hand behind her head.

"Ah, yes. You've come for a reading, I assume? My name is Katrina. Your name is?" She may be able to do love readings, charms, and future assumptions, but she couldn't magically learn someone's name. No way.

"I'm Navigale, from Karnia. I-I was wondering if you would do a love reading for me..?" The girl shifted awkwardly, and Katrina couldn't help but wonder what a human would have found to love in an animal.

"Yes, quite. My readings cost 100 bells. Is that alright?" When Navigale nodded, the cat smiled and glanced down into her ball of crystal. "The name of whom you wish me to read of?"

Navigale's face flushed, and she twiddled her thumbs together quickly. "Well.. I.. err, his name is Genji."

Katrina merely nodded, her hands now circling around the crystal ball.

"Ke-ha-ha-mo-ta-ta. Ke-ha-ha-mo-ta-ta. KEEEEEEEEEEEeeeeeeeeeee!"

Fog formed inside the ball, then cleared away after a moment. Looking down, she saw the connecting of two stars, shining brighter than, what it would seem like, the sun.

"Ah, I sense a strong connection between the both of you. Speak to him on a night when the colors of many stars dance across the night sky, and that connection will become final. That is all." She looked up from her ball and was pleased to see her costumer beaming with the brightness of much satisfaction. Unlike some of the other business animals in the city, she worked hard to keep her costumers happy. "That will be 100 bells, please!"

Navigale hastily handed the said amount of bells to the cat, then practically skipped out of the small building. Katrina snatched the bells and placed them under her desk. She didn't want to keep them in view, there were a few shady animals who stepped in here every now and again.

And speaking on that subject...

Katrina's door swung open without even a knock – and she only knew one person with the nerve to do something like that. Getting a mock smile, she crossed her arms, mystical aurora disappearing.

"Redd... can I help you?"

* * *

Redd closed the door behind him, walking up to the desk that separated him from the fortune teller. "I just sold the remaining merchandise in my shop, so I'm not getting any more shipments until next week. I thought I would stop by... see how you were and all."

Katrina rolled her eyes. "Redd, you never care about how people are. Your probably just here to spy on my business, correct?"

The red fox got a skeptical look, tapping his paw on the desk lightly. "Well.. you could put it that way. Who was that girl who just left? I haven't seen her 'round before.."

"Name's Navigale, if you must know. I assume thats the human girl we've been hearing so much talk about in the city. Why do you care?" Katrina ran a hand through her black fur, getting a curious look. Curiosity killed the cat.

"Business of course! I need to find one of my cousin's in that town of her's, so she can obtain a invitation."

Katrina rolled her eyes and sighed. "Should have guessed. Can you please escort yourself out now? I might have costumers coming soon."

Redd sighed, then nodded. "Fine. But before I go, will you give me a reading?"

"Will you pay?" Katrina readied her hands back on the crystal ball.

"Yes."

"Then tell me which reading you'd like."

Redd pondered for a moment, then smiled in a slightly mischievous way. "A love reading, please."

Katrina got a surprised look – usually when he asked for readings, it had to do with fortune. Why the sudden interest in love-life anyways? After a moment, she figured he was just mocking her in some way.

"Goodbye, Redd." Katrina sighed and pointed one paw to the door. "Don't you have people to spite or something?" The fox merely chuckled, then picked up a small bag of bells, plopping it on her desk.

"Paid in advance. Sometime when you close up tonight, your now obligated to tell my love reading, kitty cat."

"I'm not 'obligated' to do anything, but if you insist, then fine. However I have no interest in keeping you here as soon as my business is closed, not until I'm sure no one sees you sniffing around here anyways. So, you can come back at ten. Understand?"

Redd released a sigh, scratching his pointed ear lightly. "Your so cold. But, fine. I'll come back around that time. Your going to miss me in the time-being, you know."

"Doubt it."

"Heh." Redd smirked and turned away from her, lifting his hand in the air as a slight gesture of goodbye. "See you later, kitty cat!" Before she could spite him for calling her that, he disappeared out the door. That sly fox was certainly annoying – why did he insist on torturing her with his presence, more than any other animal?

Katrina just sighed. He had to leave her alone eventually, right?

* * *

–

Sunday  
9:10 P.M.  
Carniven City

–

* * *

Katrina stacked the last of today's earnings under her desk and sighed. It'd taken ten extra minutes to finish her last costumer's fortune, considering he had far too many questions. At least he paid 100 bells per, though. She grabbed a purple cloth from the floor and draped it over her crystal ball. She was going to stop by the HRA for a bit before Redd came. She felt sorry for Lyle.

Smiling to herself, Katrina turned to the door and swiftly pulled it open, jumping when she saw a familiar skunk standing in front of her. He was in a position that suggestion he'd been about to knock.

"O-Oh! Katrina! I was worried you'd gone home already!" The creature smiled brightly, resting his shoe-shining cloth on his shoulder.

"Ah, nah, I have.. business to do at ten tonight. Can I help you with something, Kicks?" The cat smiled back at the skunk, fiddling with one of the jewels hanging off her necklace.

"I.. just wanted to see you is all. Um.. d-do you need a shoe-shine or anything? It'd be on the house!" Kicks shuffled his feet nervously, glancing down at the ground every few seconds.

"Oh, no thanks. Not today, at least." Katrina blinked, then tilted her head. "But.. well, I could _use_ one sometime soon. Do you think you'll have time tomorrow if your here? And I'll pay. It's no big deal."

Kicks nodded his head quickly, a new brightness in his eyes seeming to come into play. "Of course! A-And, it's alright, it'll still be on the house!"

Katrina placed a hand on her cheek in thought. "Well.. alright. But, then, I insist you let me tell your fortune for free sometime. It'll be fair trade. Deal?"

The skunk smiled and placed his thumbs up. "Deal! I'll see you tomorrow then! Be sure to stop by first thing in the morning, if the weather is nice, okay?" The black cat nodded, and he gave her a swift wave. "G'night!"

"Night." Katrina laughed a bit, raising her hand to return the wave. At least she had something else to look forward to, other than work.

* * *

"Lyle?" Katrina walked into the HRA, her long tail dragging behind her. She was getting pretty tired. Usually she went straight home, and straight to bed due to having to wake up early. But it wasn't in her to leave without saying hi to the older animal. He didn't have any other workers in this building, and she knew as well as any other, the guy hated his job.

"Ah, Katrina! Good to see you. Indeed. Bang." Lyle walked out from the model room, blinking at the sudden change of light. "'Ole Lyle assumes there something you wanna talk about? Bang."

"Not really. Just thought I'd say hi to you. Is everything alright?"

"Great. Fantastic. Bang. Never had a better day at work. Got a lot of costumers and lookers today. Bang." Lyle walked over to the desk and scribbled on a piece of paper for a moment. "Close late today, though. Bang."

"Ah, that's horrible.. I hate working late hours." Katrina plopped down in one of the chairs that lay on the right side of the office. "How late?"

"Twelve. On the dot. Bang."

"I feel sorry for you, Lyle.."

"'Ole Lyle feels sorry for himself. Bang." The older animal chuckled, then turned to his visitor. "What're you doing here so late, though? Bang. It's not too late, Lyle knows, but you usually go straight home. Bang."

Katrina rolled her eyes. "Redd wanted to stop by around ten.. he insists I tell his love reading. I don't know what that crazy fox is trying to do, but it's annoying."

Lyle shook his head. "Redd. One word. Crazy fox. Bang." He paused. "......That's two words. Dang."

Katrina laughed a bit, nodding her head in agreement. "Yeah. He probably just wants to boast himself about someone liking him. Anyways, I guess I should go on back. Prepare myself for whatever it is he plans to mock me about. Goodbye, Lyle!"

"Bye. Bang." Lyle waved at her, watching as she departed from the HRA offices.

That cat had some seriously nuts friends.

* * *

–

Sunday  
10:00 P.M.  
Carniven City

–

* * *

_Knock Knock._

"Enter." Katrina didn't bother putting on her mystic voice, seeing as she already knew who it was. Redd entered as soon as she spoke, and padded his way back to stand in front of her desk. He had a bright smile on his face, as if he were actually looking forward to this. "Your weird."

"And this is coming from someone who stares into a crystal ball all day?" Redd chuckled and crossed his arms. "Come on Katrina, no more stalling, finish my reading and I'll leave you alone."

"Fine." Katrina placed her hands on the ball and looked down into it, then glanced back up at Redd. "The name of who you wish me to read attractions of?"

Redd placed a hand under his chin in thought. "Hm... I don't know for sure." The black cat sighed. How did he expect her to do this without a name? After a moment, he finally answered. "You."

Katrina blinked, freezing in place for a moment. "........Huh?"

"You. I want you to read your own name, for me."

Was he serious? "O-Okay...." Katrina drew in a quick breath, thanking God her fur was black, otherwise her tinted cheeks would have shone. "Ke-ha-ha-mo-ta-ta. Ke-ha-ha-mo-ta-ta. YEEEEEEEEeeeeeeee!"

Katrina stared into the ball, watching as different stars appeared in the crystals. The image shifted for some time before deciding on a shape, which she couldn't decipher what unless she were to stare at it for a few hours.

"Well?" Redd had curious eyes, crossing his arms.

"I-I......" Katrina trailed off.

For the first time in her fortune telling career... she had no idea what those symbols meant.

"I.. don't.. know!" She shot up from her seat and gasped, clasping her hands over her mouth. Her fur began to bristle slowly. "I don't know what those mean!" Redd's eyes widened a bit at this. Katrina was never wrong, he knew, and she always understood what she was talking about, no matter how stupid it sounded. She must be joking. But she couldn't be.. not if she was re-acting like this.

"Well.. how about I give you some time to figure it out?" Katrina visually relaxed at this offer, though she looked suspicious. "I won't tell anyone, either, okay?"

"The catch?" Katrina's fur began to lay flat on her shoulders once more.

"You have to tell me eventually, is all." Redd turned towards the door, smiling to himself. He was rather calm, wasn't he? "I was only messing with you anyways, I didn't think you'd actually do this."

"Seriously?"

"Seriously. Look, I have to get some sleep, I'm tired." Redd opened to door, then glanced over his shoulder. "Heh, bye, kitty cat. Watch out for your business, when I get new furniture, I'll steal away your costumers." The fortune teller's fur bristled again, and he quickly added – "Kidding." – before walking out the door.

Katrina stood in silence, puffing her cheeks out in frustration. She should have known it was another attempt to mock her. Why wouldn't it be? He wouldn't seriously be interested in her! Shaking the thoughts from her head, she decided she'd look into this little problem in the morning.

First, she needed to go home and get some sleep..

* * *

**[Hopefully it wasn't too bad. I don't know where this story is going xD We'll see, though. Hope you enjoyed the first chapter!]**


	2. Just A Little Lie

_I don't own Animal Crossing or any the characters!  
__...I wish, though._

* * *

–

Monday  
8:38 A.M.  
Carniven City

–

* * *

Katrina stumbled off the bus, fighting to keep her footing as she did so. She almost had it too, but then her tail got under her paw and caused her to fall straight onto her face. Whoever said that cats always land on their feet, must have been pretty stupid person.. or animal. She wasn't sure which.

"Nice one." Katrina felt her fur bristle at the sound of _his_ voice. _Mocking_ her.

"Shut-up!" She pulled herself to her feet, not at all surprised to see Redd. He was carrying a few boxes up the steps of the city, most likely waiting to send them into his shop. She figured it was his new shippings. "Your so insensitive!"

"Why? Because I think it's funny to see you fall flat on your face?" Redd's lips curled into a smirk. He loved pushing her buttons. He always found it increasingly adorable how her reactions came out.. so.. childish.

"_Yes_!" Katrina let a hiss escape her throat, listening to the bus driver chuckle at them behind her. It was more of a 'yar har har', though. Then, she heard the doors slam, and the bus was off down the road to circle around different towns, only to land back in the city.

"Don't get your tail in a twist – oops." Redd laughed a bit. He honestly hadn't meant to say it in contrast to her current fall. Shaking his head, he resumed to moving towards his shop. "Cool off for a while, klutz. Then we can talk. Your kinda scary when your mad."

"Good, I hope I scare you," She muttered, moving up the stairs and shouldering by him. She'd like to strangle that fox in more ways than one.

Redd just let out another chuckle, then she heard him disappear into his store. Releasing a long sigh, she made a mental note to go in there sometime and check out what exactly is was he sold. She knew it was furniture, but she wasn't sure what quality he provided it in. Poor, probably.

Glancing up at the sky, she remembered all of a sudden the plans she had made.. Oh! And it was sunny too!

"Well! Off to get a shoe-shine, I suppose!" It was probably a bit dorky to look forward to things like that..

* * *

Seeing as it was before shopping hours, there were, as predicted, no animals – or humans as of the current standings – walking around the plaza. Or anywhere for that matter. It probably wouldn't be long before they came running into Carniven, though.

Katrina sat down on the steps where Kicks usually had his shoe-shining business set up. She knew he was here today – a few of his tools were setting off to the side. She figured he went to talk with someone around the city. He'd be back soon though. He usually was.

Looking behind her shoulder, she couldn't help but sigh at the sight of an abandoned building. What was that place for anyways? It'd just sat there for the past three years. There were always business-owners looking to buy a building in the city, so why didn't they just sell off the place?

She made another mental note to ask about that some time. Lyle would know. He knew everything.

"K-Katrina!" Kicks' cheery voice made her jump, and her gaze swerved around to meet his. He seemed a little surprised she was here. Maybe he didn't think she'd actually come?

"Good morning to you too," Katrina said in a joking tone, then looked down at her high-heeled shoes. "You promised me a shoe-shine this morning, right? I figured it'd be a good thing to go ahead and do. Hey? Maybe I'll even get to see my reflection in them. Something other than a crystal ball, you know?"

Kicks smiled, trying to hold back a small chuckle he had. Nodding, he grabbed his shining cloth. "Awright, then, Miss Katrina. In that case, would you prefer to have them matched by your clothing style, or your clothing color?"

"Style, please."

"Quite a choice! Just give me one moment and I'll have those shoes of yours a'shinin!" Kicks hopped up closer to her, then bent down and gracefully draped the cloth over her shoes. Then, he swiftly began to move the cloth to where it was rubbing against the exterior of her heels.

Katrina had to admit, this skunk knew what he was doing. He made a heck of a living off of it too, surprisingly.

After a moment, he pulled the cloth away and stepped to the side a bit. "There we go! Shiny as a brass whistle. And I do believe it was on the house. Err.. s-steep.." He scratched his cheek a bit, blinking.

They really were shiny..

"Thank you, Kicks! Your a mastermind of shoes, you are!" Katrina smiled more in a brightening manner, jumping down from the steps. "I'll have to start coming here more often." She suddenly took a moment to twiddle her paws, then blinked. "Oh! Um – I owe you that free fortune, so stop by whenever, okay?"

"Th-thank you, Miss Katrina!" Kicks got somewhat of a nervous look. He always felt a bit odd getting fortunes from her. It was just weird to know someone could actually predict the future.. well, weird in a good and kind of interesting way. "I'll be sure to stop by some time this week, if the weather stays fair."

The fortune teller beamed at this, causing the shoe-shiner's cheeks to go slightly pink. Thank God for his darkened fur.

"I'll see you whenever then. Anyways, I should go. Kapp'n should be coming back with a load of animals – or humans – with dirty shoes for you to get to. And I have fortunes to give out. Maybe I'll talk to you later." She gave a swift wave of her paw, then turned to head back to her shop.

Kicks stood for a moment, then gasped. "Oh, wait!"

Katrina paused and looked back at him, over her shoulder.

"Um, if you wouldn't mind me saying... I-I don't think your a klutz.." The cat tensed in front of him, and he quickly continued. "I saw you fall off the bus this morning..."

"I... see.." Katrina sweat dropped a bit. Typically her luck. "Thank you, Kicks. At least your decent enough not to rub it in my face." _Stupid Redd_!

Kicks smiled awkwardly. "No problem."

* * *

–

Monday  
2:56 P.M.  
Carniven City

–

* * *

Katrina passed another bag of bells under her desk, smiling brightly. That must have been the fifth love fortune she had read today. What was with teenagers now-a-days? ...Not that she could talk, she supposed. After all, she still dreamed of finding prince charming every now and again. Silly, right?

Suddenly, she heard another knock on her door. Blinking, she placed her paws back on the crystal ball.

"Please enter," Katrina called out in her mystic voice, eyes glued to the ball in front of her. A small bell rang as the door was opened, and a bunny walked in quickly, as if scared to be seen here. He had tall, brown ears, in contrast to everything else – which was white, also excluding the paws. "May I help you?"

"I, err, need a love fortune.." The rabbit began to shift weight uncomfortably.

Make that her sixth love fortune.

"As you wish. Please state your name, the name of the one you wish to know of, and the town you are located within."

"My name is Genji, otaku. And.. I want to know about a girl named Navigale. -" Oh brother. "-We both live in Karnia."

Katrina tried extremely hard to keep the amusement from showing on her features – and it must of worked, because Gengi didn't take any notice of it. So Navigale's feelings were mutual. How sweet. Not wasting time, she began to move her cat nails against the crystal lightly.

"Ke-ha-ha-mo-ta-ta... Ke-ha-ha-mo-ta-ta... KEEEEEEEEEEeeeeeeeeee!" As expected, the bunny jumped as she rose her voice. Taking her eyes off the crystal ball, she was unsurprised in what she had seen. After all, he was asking the same question his little crush had. Why would she see anything different.

"Ah, I sense a strong connection between the both of you. Speak to her on a night when the colors of many stars dance across the night sky, and that connection will become final. That is all," she uttered out the exact same fortune she'd given Navigale, nodding in a matter-of-fact way. The aurora's would be shining through their town tomorrow night, so he didn't have much notice, eh? "That will be 100 Bells, please?"

Genji looked absolutely ecstatic, none-the-less. No surprise there. "Of course, otaku!" He reached into his pocket and brought out a small bag, plopping it onto her desk. "Thanks! H-core of you to help me out!" Katrina just smiled and nodded.

"My pleasure."

Genji got a pumped look, then ran out of her shop quickly, causing the girl to let out a giggle. She noticed he had more confidence now at least.

That thought only made her smile so much brighter. "I wonder if my fortunes really make people that happy?" She'd never realized it before..

* * *

Needless to say, business slowed down a bit after that. Well, in fact, no one had come in at all. She blamed the fact it was Monday. So what else could she do? It's not like she _had _to stay stationed in her work-place, right?

Stepping into the Happy Room Academy, or HRA, she plopped down into one of the chairs. As she usually did. Lyle was chatting to some animal over the model room – she assumed it was yesterday's big winner.

Well congrats to whoever.

"Hey, Katrina!" A familiar porcupine walked into the building, catching the cat's attention.

Katrina blinked in confusion. "Labelle? What are you doing here?" The female barely ever left her shop! This was a surprise.

"Gracie gave me the day off. Since Winter is just around the corner, she's putting up new clothing pieces and furniture. I don't see why.. it's not as if we sell that much." She sweat dropped a bit.

"I beg to differ. That human kid buys from you all the time. Err, well, clothes anyways." Katrina giggled. "I can see why no one buys the furniture though. Sometimes I wonder if Gracie is crazier than Redd.." She paused for a moment. "Scratch that."

Labelle sat down next to her, mindful not to lean back on the chair, and rolled her eyes. "Redd will always and forever be the craziest person in the city. I don't care if Gracie raises the prices to 9,000,000,000! He's still insaner."

"Is insaner a word?" A little off subject, but she couldn't help it.

"I don't know," Labelle admitted, twiddling her thumbs. Then, she smiled a bit. "Sooo!? What's with you and Kicks?" Katrina gave her a questioning look, causing the other to sigh. "Oh, come on! I saw you with him this morning!"

"I was getting a shoe-shine!" Katrina let out an embarrassed squeak. What, she couldn't innocently get her shoes done without being accused of things going on between the person shining them and herself? Next thing she knew, people would think she was interested in Redd!

Talk about the apocalypse.

"Mmhm." Labelle couldn't help a look of suspicion as she glanced at the she-cat. Before she had another chance to speak though, Lyle came bounding up to them.

"'Ole Lyle's glad to have some guests today!" He beamed brightly, unaware to the relief that overwhelmed Katrina. "Have you come for room advice? Bang."

Katrina shook her head, then smiled sheepishly. "N-Nah, just thought I'd come say hi.."

"You do a lot of that. Bang." Lyle laughed and crossed his arms. "Did 'Ole Lyle miss anything?"

"Nope." Labelle smiled innocently, though something was a bit off..

Now, he wasn't deaf, so of course he could hear every word the girls had said before he walked over here. And he also wasn't blind. He could tell by the look in Labelle's eyes.. she was planning something.

* * *

–

Monday  
10:31 P.M.  
Carniven City

–

* * *

Katrina sighed as she packed up her stuff, once again tired from working the late shift. Honestly, she had to stop staying here so late. If only Labelle hadn't kept her here so late with random talking. Darn here.

Katrina threw her backpack over her shoulder and exited her fortune building, walking forward to stand at the bus stop. She figured she was the only one here.

Wrong.

"Oh look, if it isn't the gypsy princess." Redd came bounding up behind her. Why did he have to appear in almost every serene moment of her life? Couldn't she get a break? Just a small one?

"What do you want?" Katrina side-glanced at the fox, who was smiling devilishly at her. She _hated_ when he smiled like that. It meant he was planning something. And that 'something' usually had to do with driving her up a tree.

Sometimes literally.

"Oh, nothing. Just noticed you here. Late shift again?"

"You could say that. If talking is the same thing as working, anyways. Business was slow." Katrina sighed and looked out ahead of her, trying to ignore the awkward silence building up. Oh, Kapp'n, why did the bus always have to be late?

"Hey, Katrina.. I was thinking-"

"Ooh, that's a first." Katrina tried not to smile at his pout-face.

"-that you could go somewhere with me tomorrow." Redd coughed into his paw. Almost nervously.. what the heck was going on with these boys lately? "Like, to get something to eat.. or.. err.. I don't know."

Katrina panicked. "Uh, I wish I could, but, um.. well, I.." She wished she hadn't. But she wasn't the one to crush feelings – and she really didn't like the idea of going somewhere with _Redd_ of all animals!

"But?" Redd got a dismayed look.

"Err.. I'm going somewhere with Kicks tomorrow! Yeah, that's it! You see, it's, um, the night the aurora's shine through in Karnia, right? Annnd.. a friend of ours, um, Navigale, plans to, err, share her feelings with an animal she likes!" Yeah.. that's believable. "So.. we... are going to give her support!" She smiled brightly, hoping he'd buy it.

He did.

"Oh! Sure!" Redd smirked. "But you owe me!"

"Great.." Katrina rolled her eyes, watching as the bus finally turned the corner, then halted in front of them. Where had this thing been five minutes ago? Darn Kapp'n.

Katrina piled onto the bus quickly, Redd behind her. She pushed through the few animals – and two human girls – to the back of the bus, plopping down on the last seat. Pushing herself against the wall, she wasn't surprised when she felt a plop next to her. She didn't have to look to tell it was Redd.

The fortune teller just leaned her head against the window and closed her eyes. Her town was a little far from here – it'd be a while. And it would be a while for Redd. If only one of them could have lived closer to Carniven – then they could part ways quicker.

Eh... but it wasn't so bad. Neither of them spoke through the ride. There was just the occasional yawn from both of them. But her mind was no longer on the fox beside her.

…It now rested on the fact of _how in the world _she was going to get Kicks into going to Karnia with her. Or _how in the world _she was going to convince Navigale they'd come to see her. Or even _if_ the skunk knew who the human was.

But she had no choice!

Dang. Why couldn't Redd stop putting her into these situations?

…Darn him.

* * *

**[I wrote this chapter so late at night... xD Hopefully it came out alright!]**


	3. Beautiful Night

_I don't own Animal Crossing or any of it's characters!_

_Warning: This chapter jumps around/time changes a lot xD Sorry!_

* * *

–

Tuesday  
1:20 A.M.  
Carniven City

–

* * *

Katrina opened the door to her shop and sleepily walked inside, trying not to fall asleep on her feet. She felt so stupid being here at this time in the morning, but she needed to think. In fact, she wouldn't mind walking over to the crystal ball and letting it answer all her questions.

…But wouldn't that be considered cheating?

Katrina lifted her paw to her mouth and yawned, plopping down at her chair. She closed her eyes for a moment, glancing down at the beautiful crystal in front of her. "At least you don't have problems." She sighed. "What would you do if you were in my situation?"

There was a long pause.

"...I'm talking to a crystal ball." Katrina began to question her sanity for a moment, but pushed the thought from her head. She's have time to wonder if she was going insane later – right now, there was a problem to think about.

Well, as far as she was concerned, she had four choices.

A – Tell Kicks that she used him as an excuse to get away from Redd, and ask if he'd still be willing to go to Karnia with her.

B – Tell Redd she was trying to avoid him.

C – Go with it and ask Kicks to go encourage Navigale.

D – Run away from the city and never show her face around here, no matter what happens. She could move to an island, live in a hut, and pull off being the gypsy of that place – no matter if she had to eat fish every day for her next nine lives.

Choice D was tempting.. but, unfortunately, the third choice was all she could do without completely hurting one of the boys. She had no intention of making them feel bad.. great.

...Not that she cared about either of them that much. Redd especially.

Releasing another sigh, she looked down at her crystal ball. "Help?" She tried to smile, bringing her nails to rest on top of the ball. Slowly, she began to circle it, repeating the same question she had been all night – 'What should I do?'. This was one of the first times she'd ever done her own fortune.

"Ke-ha-ha-mo-ta-ta. Ke-ha-ha-mo-ta-ta. KEEEEEEEEEEeeeeeeee!" Katrina stared down into the ball, holding her breath. Needless to say, she wasn't too great when it came to fortunes like these. But what she saw in the ball definitely shocked her... it was that same sign. The same one she'd seen that night with Redd.

Frowning, she released her air and shook her head. "Looks like I'm on my own.."

_'And I better find out what that symbol means..'_

* * *

–

Tuesday  
8:23 A.M.  
Carniven City

–

* * *

Katrina's eyes opened slowly, only to let her be greeted by blurred vision. Great. She's fallen asleep.. Raising her head up from the desk, she placed her paw on her head and groaned. Sleeping on hard surfaces always made her head hurt.. and the floor of her store was no exception.

...Wait. Floor? Hadn't she been sitting in her chair? Sighing, she rubbed her eyes, letting vision slowly seep back into her. It was her fault anyways – she was pretty dumb for coming here at one in the morning to begin with. Oh well, it was an interesting learning experience. ...Next time she should bring Labelle with her, just to mess with her.

Katrina sat up and looked around her shop. Everything was set up already.. but how? Perhaps she was going insane. But, seriously, she could swear that she never set anything up in here – she could also swear she had been sitting in the chair when she feel asleep.

And lastly, she knew she hadn't fallen asleep with a blanket on her.

Standing up, she straightened her headdress and placed the blanket aside. She'd deal with her insanity later. Eyes going to the clock hanging up, she blinked in surprise. Well, at least she had gotten a few extra hours in, but it was nearly time to open! However.. it wasn't just quite time.

So, Katrina figured she'd take the advantage. It was time to face Kicks.

* * *

Katrina padded out into the plaza, glad to see the sky was clear, minus a few clouds here and there. That meant exactly who she was looking for, would be awaiting on his usual plinth. Before walking up to the abandoned house though, she paused beside the hair saloon and waved at Harriet, who graciously returned the gesture.

That poodle was certainly a good dog to talk to when one had problems. She would be sure to keep that in mind if this turned into a complete disaster.

Turning back in the direction she was heading in, she passed a few by-standers, waiting for their shops to open, and approached the steps the shoe-shiner was usually positioned on. "Kicks?" She blinked, tilting her head a bit. Her ear twitched, as if straining to hear an answer.

"Y-Yes, Katrina?" She turned to see the skunk had approached behind her. He seemed to do that a lot, didn't he?

"Oh, err, hi!" The fortune teller gave a nervous greeting, scratching her ear lightly. Darn Redd for putting her into these situations. "I was wondering.. um.. I know this is a bit out of the blue, but would you mind coming to Karnia with me tonight?" Kicks got a questioning look, and she quickly added in – "You see, I have this friend, Navigale, who is going to share her feelings for a certain animal, and I'm going to make sure she doesn't back out! But.. I.. err, don't want to go alone!"

Kicks blinked for a few times, then tilted his head. "You want me to help you with moral support..?"

Katrina released a sigh, looking to the ground. "You don't want to, do you?" At that moment, the skunk's face went into a panic.. and she had no idea why. But something inside her clicked just then.

"S-Sure I do! I don't mind! I just.. I was registering what you said! It's the night the aurora's shine in that town, right? So.. I imagine it must be important to your friend! And if your the one asking me to do this, I wouldn't mind at all!"

What did he mean by that?

Katrina's face lit up brightly, her eyes widening. "Really!? Oh God, thank you so much! You have no idea what this means to me!" Literally, he had no idea. At least she had gotten him to agree.. but what about Navigale?

As if to confuse her anymore, she swore she could see the slightest hint of red shining through the skunk's black fur. "As long as your happy, Miss Katrina..!" Kicks put on a nervous smile, twiddling his thumbs behind his back. Even if it was for moral support towards one of the fortune teller's friends, it would be really pleasant to see the auroras with the cat..

Kicks couldn't help but feel nervous, though. He wondered if she was too?

* * *

–

Tuesday  
4:40 P.M.  
Carniven City

–

* * *

Katrina watched another costumer walk out from her shop, sighing a bit. She had been awfully busy today, and she couldn't help but wonder why. It was still a business day.. sheesh. Maybe it had to do with the auroras? She'd given out a fair amount of love fortunes today, yet again.

After all, the lights were appearing in possibly a few other places.

"Well, I should close early today, I suppose.." Katrina tilted her head a bit, then shrugged. She had to get her stuff packed up in time to head over to Karnia with Kicks, plus she wanted to stop by someone and ask a few things.

Grabbing her crystal ball, ever-so-gently, she placed it in her small backpack that was off to the side, smiling. This object was one that brought so much joy to people... she could hardly believe that it had ended up in her paws. Although even she found it strange that a used-to-be small-town cat could see into the future. It did put excitement into her life, though.

Katrina turned back to the table and picked up the ball's plinth, setting it down beside the crystal gently. Then, she took the gypsy-fied **(I don't think that's a word xD)** cloth she had draped over the surface and quickly folded it. She laid it inside the backpack as well, then gave a satisfied nod. Everything was taken care of.

Walking to the entrance, she flicked her paw over a switch, letting the room be engulfed in darkness. Turning to look back at her room space before exiting.. she could swear to anyone that she saw that unknown symbol painted out on her wall..

But when she flicked the lights on again – it was gone.

* * *

Katrina walked into the hair saloon quietly, in case Harriet was getting in touch with her 'creative nature'. The hairdresser here in Carniven was certainly odd, but she could make you beautiful in the blink of an eye.. well, if you answered her questions correctly, anyways.

"Okay! I think I got the style just right, sweet-heart! What do you think?" Katrina looked at the animal sitting in Harriet's styling chair. It took a moment to analyze from where she was standing, but she pinned that the creature was indeed a rabbit. In fact, she felt she had seen this animal somewhere!

"Oh. My. Gosh! I look fantastic! Now there is absolutely no way Iggly can resist me!" The bunny let out an excited squee, poking her hair a few times as if in amazement. Katrina never understood the shallows values of make-up and such.. she only used it to keep her mystic touch. "Thank you, like, sooo much!"

"Your welcome, sweetie! I'm glad you like it!" Harriet smiled and tilted her head. "And since it's for a special occasion, it'll be on that me, alright? Just promise to visit me again some time, Tiffany!" Ah.. so that was the rabbit's name.

Wait!? Tiffany!? That bunny had come to get a fortune some time earlier today... she was from Karnia!

"I promise I will! Ehe, I always do. Any-who, I should get out of here. I still have to get a new outfit before my big night! If you'll excuse me, Harriet." The poodle nodded and stepped out of the way, allowing the bunny to pass back towards the entrance, walking right by Katrina. "Toodles!"

And she was out.

Katrina sighed – she probably should have said something, but how would it look for her to ask a complete stranger for help? Ah, well. Things would get better. She just needed advice was all, and, err.. a map of Karnia, maybe, but she'd get by this.

Harriet finally seemed to realize she was there. "Oh, Katrina, dear! Are you here for another hair-cut? You just had one not long ago!"

The cat snickered. "Nah, I'm here because I need some advice. Do you have any time?" The poodle nodded and patted her styling chair.

"Sure! Have a seat." Harriet padded over to the chair beside that one, plopping down, and Katrina obeyed her wish to sit down.

"You see, I have a bit of a problem."

"Well, start from the beginning, dear! I'm here to help."

And Katrina did. She told her everything.

–

Harriet pondered this for a moment, her eyebrow raising up a bit, as if skeptically. "So.. you've lied to Redd to avoid him, and now you've asked Kicks to help you with moral support.. for someone you've never really met?" Katrina nodded. "Well, if I were you, I probably would have thought of a better lie."

Katrina groaned, shaking her head. "Not helping.."

"I wasn't done! Any-who, since you've gotten yourself into this... why don't you just go ahead to Navigale's and tell this animal – human – that you've come to be sure her fortune is true. You could tell her it's part of your business?"

"And how do I explain to her about Kicks?" Katrina tilted her head, blinking a few times in thought.

"Well... tell her he's there to... well.. you see.." Harriet blinked, then sweat dropped. "You got me there, hun."

"It's fine.. I'll think of something. Thank you for helping me out, Harriet!" Katrina smiled brightly, standing up from her position. "I should get going. It's almost time to head out. I don't wanna keep Kicks waiting!"

"You do that, sweet-heart! Just try not to get him hurt." Harriet winked at her jokingly, earning a sigh from the cat.

Darn Harriet.

* * *

–

Tuesday  
9:29 P.M.  
Karnia

–

* * *

"That was a longer ride than I expected.." Katrina stumbled off the bus again, dizzy from the sudden feeling of standing. She could feel Kicks holding on to her tail so it didn't get tangled into her footing this time. That caused her a bit of embarrassment – now she knew for sure he thought she was a klutz.. just too nice to admit it.

"Remind me how we amused ourselves throughout the ride?" Kicks got a joking smile, hopping down fully once she had safely made it to the ground. The bus doors closed behind them, and off the little yellow vehicle went. Kapp'n was always hasty, wasn't he?

"I really have no idea." The black cat regained herself and turned towards the skunk, smiling awkwardly. It was completely weird being here with him, but she figured she'd survive. He was certainly less odd to be around, compared to Redd. "Anyways, do you still have that map we got from Rover?"

Rover was the blue-and-white cat who always seemed to be on the bus.. he was fantastic at having random maps lying around, she'd give him that bit of credit.

"Oh – yeah!" Kicks pulled the piece of paper out of his pocket, unfolding it rapidly. He pointed a paw to the right after a moment of examination. "Navigale's house is that way. I bet she'll be excited to see you!"

Katrina sweat dropped. "You have no idea."

–

_Knock. Knock._

Katrina shifted a bit of her weight as she heard Kicks' knocks echo through the tall house this human owned – two stories? What the heck? She made money, but honestly, never that much! She heard a few scuffles from inside, possibly a clash or two if she didn't have any deaf-essences in her ears, then the knob clicked.

"Hello?" Navigale smiled brightly as she opened the door, which was taken over by surprise when she saw Katrina. "Oh, you're – "

"--Here!" Katrina cut in, letting out a soft laugh. "Um, good to see you!" She let out a purred, letting the confused Navigale recover from her thoughts. Glancing at Kicks, she blinked. "Um, do you mind if we have a moment, nya?"

Kicks smiled, shaking his head. "Oh, um, go ahead! I'll got get Genji, so we can all be here! I still have the map, so.." He trailed off, turned, and ran. Hasty much?

Navigale blinked. "What was he talking about? I mean.. err... whats going on?"

Katrina sighed, and for the millionth time, explained her problem.

–

"Ooh! I see!" Navigale nodded her head in a matter-of-fact way. "You've gotten yourself into a pinch, but I see where your coming from! That Redd is a shady character, isn't he?" She released a long sigh, then shrugged. "But, I'll play along! Sounds fun to me! Ah – but.. he wasn't serious about getting Genji right? I've kinda chickened out of telling him that I.. well, you know."

"Err, well..." Katrina sweat dropped. "Too bad for you. I'm here for your moral support, remember? You've got no choice now.."

The blue-haired human's eyes lit up in alarm. "You've **got to be kidding me**!" Whoo.. vicious.

"Sorry, Navigale-"

"Navi," She interrupted suddenly, sighing. "Everyone calls me Navi." Katrina gave a small nod, and the human began to speak once more. "I can't believe this is happening! I can't.. I mean... ugh! Why couldn't I have just asked for a fortune reading!?"

"And why couldn't I have just declined Redd," Katrina added in a mutter, shaking her head. This was not worth all the trouble. She should have just flat out said 'no'.

...Another click in her mind came into play.

"Yo, Navi!" Katrina turned to see the familiar rabbit running up to them, Kicks close behind.

"G-G-G-G-Genji!" Navi got a flushed face, her eyes widening in nothing short of terror. Which, the rabbit seemed to understand, because he didn't act surprised at all.

Genji halted in front of the girls, smiling brightly. "So, you really want to go see the auroras with me tonight, Navi? They'll look great! A-and.. I do have something to tell you." He glanced nervously at Katrina.. who, none-the-less, could take a hint. Kicks must have caught this too, because as soon as he stopped in front of them, he turned straight on his heels and began walking in the direction he'd come in, whistling lightly. Only this time, Katrina followed after him. Quickly.

"That was expected," Katrina mumbled with a laugh, once they had exited ear-shot of the other two. "I guess they didn't even need me!" Despite that detail, she was actually glad she wasted three hours on a bus to get here. Making another friend was a good thing.. and plus, she may have just learned a few things.

"Trust me," Kicks said with a chuckle, smiling sweetly at her. "They needed you." He was quite for a moment, then glanced up at the sky. "M-Miss Katrina!" His eyes widened.

Katrina got a confused look, following his gaze. Upon seeing the colorful lights lining the sky, she couldn't help but release a sigh of relief. Things turned out alright.. for one little lie, anyways. "They're beautiful!" She breathed breathlessly, her gaze softening. Her fortune hadn't been kidding when it said the stars would light up the night – they were practically blazing _with_ the lights!

Kicks gazed up at the lights for a moment longer, then smiled down at the cat next to him. "Yeah... beautiful."

He knew she didn't hear him.

–

"Thank you for coming over, you two!" Navi clasped her hands together, smiling brightly. Genji seemed awfully happy too – and it didn't take a genius to figure out all had gone as planned. "Promise me you'll come visit soon? Ooh, or better yet, I'll come to the city and see you two!"

Katrina couldn't hold her giggle back – it broke out. "Your welcome. And, sure, stop by any time. I'm always up for the company!" Kicks nodded his head in agreement.

"I'd love to give you a shoe-shine sometime, if it's awright with you, anyways." Navi beamed at this, causing a smile to form on the skunk's face. "I hope to you there!"

"Oh, expect me too!" Genji nodded his head slowly. "I need to get my shoes buffed up if I plan to keep my work-outs going right! Nothing better than a pair of bright and shiny shoes to use on the running-wheel!"

_'Running wheel?'_ Katrina sweat dropped. Weren't those for gerbils and hamsters? Things of that nature?

Just then, the bus pulled up, slowly and surely. Kapp'n opened the doors as soon as the yellow monstrosity stopped and smiled at the residents standing in front of the opening. "Yar, any of ye be lookin' into boardin'?"

"That would be us!" Katrina turned on her heels and nodded, then looked over her shoulder. "See you guys soon, alright!" Navi and Genji both waved, and she couldn't help but noticed their two free hands were not cupping the other's. At least she got her happy ending.

Katrina said her last goodbyes, along with Kicks, and boarded onto yellow bus, taking her seat in the front this time. As predicted, Kicks sat next to her. After a mere moment, the doors to the bus closed and they set in motion.

"Yar, where ye two be headin'?"

Kicks looked up and blinked. "Ah, I'll be going to Amberton, please."

Kapp'n nodded. "And ye, lass?"

"I'll be going back to Carniven City." Kicks gave her a curious glance. "I have to take care of something."

"That will do, lass. Just sit back and enjoy the ride, yar har HAR!"

* * *

–

1:28 A.M.  
Wednesday  
Carniven City

–

* * *

Katrina blinked at the sleep trying to overwhelm her, but she couldn't pass out just yet. She didn't ride three hours in a bus to ditch what she had planned to come here and do. Lucky Kicks.. he had gotten back into his town about an hour ago.

Darn Kicks.

Walking up to Redd's building, she held her breath and placed three loud knocks on the door. And sure enough, the fox had come bounding up and opened the door in a matter of seconds. He seemed awfully surprised to see her too.

"Katrina!?"

"Hey." Katrina yawned and smiled. "I figured you'd still be here. What's wrong with you? Have you ever heard of sleep?"

"I don't sleep much. I'm nocturnal." Redd just rose an eyebrow in question – why was she here? "Anyways, can I help you with something? Perhaps question how the aurora was? If your plan went well?"

Katrina sighed. "I just came by to confirm something, is all. Seeing you already gives me my answer. And, they were great, by the way. In fact, they were so great, it turns out Navigale barely needed us. Too bad for me, I rode three hours on a bus to get to her."

Redd smirked. "Typical you. Glad to hear you enjoyed yourself." He then sighed, twitching his ear. "And what are you talking about? Answer to what?"

Katrina turned to head back to the bus station, hoping Kapp'n wouldn't be too long. She knew he'd just dropped her off about five minutes ago – but he was usually good at picking up people quickly. "Oh, I just needed to see if you stayed here this late."

Redd got a slightly more curious look, and she turned to smile at him.

"And thanks for the blanket this morning, Redd."

* * *

**[I really have to stop writing these as two in the morning Dx I think it came out alright, though. Maybe a tad rushed.]**

– **I'm really surprised on how many times this has been favorited! O.o Really, I am! Thank you to those who have. (And thank you to the few who have taken time to review as well!)**


	4. A Little Big Problem

_I don't own Animal Crossing, or it's characters!_

* * *

–

Wednesday  
7:48 A.M.  
Carniven City

–

* * *

Katrina hesitantly stood outside of Redd's door, shifting her weight slightly. She was still utterly zonked out from last night, and it had been hard enough to drag herself up to his door... much more to remember _where_ his door was. Two days without the proper amount of sleep could do that to a cat. Never mind the fact she was being stalked by a freakish fortune-telling symbol – she just needed to close for the day.

And she planned too.. right after she finished business.

Katrina knocked her paw against the hard wood of the fox's door, and was immediately answered with the sliding of a peep hole. She saw his eyes staring at her in shock from the other side of the door, before he muffled a simple 'hold on'. The hole closed, and she heard a bunch of clicking noises. Assuming he was taking his time unlocking the door, she let her mind trail off for a moment.

Redd had been acting slightly strange since she had spoken to him last night. She didn't see why he was taking it so seriously – all she had done was thank him for giving her blankets...

Boy, wasn't she the oblivious one?

"Katrina? What do you need?" Redd had finally gotten the door open, and was now standing in front of the cat. He crossed his arms, twitching his ear slightly.

"Oh! I just wanted to stop by before your hours started. Um.. I was wondering, do you sell books here? I mean, I know you have a _furniture_ store and all, but I was just hoping.."

The fox a thoughtful look, then motioned her in. Obliging, the she-cat padded into his store, listening as he closed to door behind her. Her eyes fell upon three pieces of furniture that took place in his shop. A large and elegant clock, a beautifully painted golden statue, and a equally beautiful painting (though she knew better than to trust the looks of his art, thanks to the gossip from around the city).

"I might have a few." Redd's voice snapped her from her daze once more. She turned to face the fox, whom was quickly digging through a box that was set off to the side. "What are you looking for? A gypsy book?" He chuckled under his breath, and despite herself, she smiled too. It was the first joke he'd cracked all morning – he'd even refrained when she fell off the bus this morning!

"A gypsy book is close," she replied dryly, sighing. "Do you remember that book I gave to you a long time ago? I said I didn't need it anymore.."

"The one you used to study fortune-telling when you had just started?" Redd got a curious look, ceasing his rampages through the old material in the box for a moment.

"Yeah! That one! I need it back for a little while – it's _really_ important!" Katrina got a hopeful look in her eyes, clasping her paws together. Would he have kept it after all these years!?

"Well..." Redd sighed and closed the box up again, turning to face her. "I don't have it in the shop anymore. I... err... kind of took it home some time back."

The fortune-teller got a bewildered look. "What? Why?"

"I wanted to see what interested you so much about staring into a crystal ball all day." Redd shrugged quickly, chuckling. "I don't know how you memorized all those symbols. About drove me insane." Getting a more serious look on his face, he nodded quickly. "I'll go get it on my break, okay? I have lunch around noon, so I don't mind running back to snatch it. I forgot my sandwich at home anyways."

Katrina got a look of complete and udder glee – and Redd could swear his stomach burst into butterflies. Which was slightly odd for him.

"Really!? Oh, thank you! Thank you soooo much!" The fortune teller, without warning, ran up to the other and threw her arms around him, giggling happily. "You have _no _idea what this means to me!"

Redd, now completely _tinted _red, shakily pat his paw to her shoulder a few times, eyes blinking rapidly in surprise. "I-It's no problem, Katrina! B-But do you mind me asking what you need it for?"

The cat released him and took a few steps back, oblivious to any reason the fox should be embarrassed. "Oh, um, I just wanted to research that symbol I saw when I did your fortune. I mean, if I never tell you what it means, then I'd practically be _stealing _money from you! And I won't have that!" She beamed brightly.

"Your certainly dedicated to your job," Redd mumbled, shifting his weight a few times. "Well, thanks then, I guess. If your doing this for my fortune's sake, then I'm glad to help." He got a slightly regretful look, coughing into his hand. "But... it's almost time for opening hours. We should get back to our stations."

_'For both our sakes,' _Katrina thought to herself, sighing. Suddenly, her ears perked up. "Oh! I'm sorry to have kept you like this, I know you must be busy! I'll be going. And – um – if you need to find me any time today, I'll either be with Harriet, Labelle, or Lyle." The fox gave her a questioning look, and she laughed. "I'm closing today – I have some major Z's to catch up on, and my friends offered a place to sleep.

Redd chuckled, shaking his head. "Your a mystery to me, Katrina..." He smiled a little. "Your _really_ a mystery to me."

She swore his gaze softened.

* * *

–

Wednesday  
10:30 A.M.  
Carniven City

–

* * *

Katrina stirred from the chair she was curled into, her nose twitching slightly – as if it were being tickled by something. Groaning, she opened one eye to peer at the figure in front of her, not surprised to see the highly amused face of Lyle. "You sleep here any longer and I'm afraid you'll scare away 'Ole Lyle's costumers. Bang."

She detected the older animal snickering under her breath, and groaned from annoyance. Rubbing her eyes, she sat up slowly, letting out a short yawn. "Whaaaaat?"

"Katrina, you've been asleep for three hours! How late did you stay up? Bang!" Lyle's eyes widened slightly. He'd never seen the she-cat _this _tired. Unaware of the past two days, the old animal felt a little left out here. Then again, he assumed nothing much had been mentioned to Labelle – seeing as the porcupine hadn't been gossiping recently.

"Pretty late! I haven't had this much sleep in a long time! Well, not straight anyways. Usually I'm tossing and turning." Katrina rolled her eyes. If she woke up in mid-sleep one more time these next few nights, she was going to scream. Maybe that unknown symbol meant 'will be sleep deprived'. Unlikely, though, considering it came out as Redd's _love _fortune.

"That ain't good for you. Sleep. Rest. Be healthy. Bang." Lyle made a 'tsk' noise, then scrambled back over to his desk, stacking a few papers together. "Have something to do with fox boy? Skunk boy? Bang?"

Katrina's eyes widened a bit. "W-What...? Why would you assume that?"

"New travels." Lyle glanced back at her, chuckling. He may not have heard the whole song and dance, but he knew enough from the few passer-bys. Plus, Navigale had come barging in around nine, when Katrina was still asleep, and gossip had shot out of her mouth so fast, he wasn't surprised he didn't catch the last two day's worth of it. He was surprised he understood _half _the things that girl had said.

"Well, they have to do with it I suppose. Monday I stayed up in complete worry about a _little white lie _I told Redd earlier, but I resolved that happily. Yesterday I simply stayed up to see if Redd stayed up as late as... what was it? Around one in the morning, I think." She shrugged.

"Why is that?"

"Well... err... the first time I stayed up late, I passed out in my fortune-telling building, and I woke up with a blanket over me. I just had a suspicion.."

"That it was him?" Lyle stopped messing with his papers and turned to face her, surprisingly interested. She never thought the animal would actually give much thought to her news – but she supposed it made him feel younger to be consulted by these things.

"Yeah," Katrina answered, smiling brightly. "I just wanted to be sure. Although... he seemed surprisingly embarrassed. Do you think it was something I said?" Her face dulled a bit, as if she were guilty of something.

Lyle laughed at this, shaking his head. "Oh, Katrina, your so oblivious... Bang."

"W-what?" Why did everyone insist on calling her 'oblivious' lately? Before she could get an answer, a familiar face stumbled through the entrance of the HRA head-quarters, smiling brightly.

"Hey, Katrina! Come here real quick, Harriet and I want to see you!" Labelle placed her hands on her hips, giving a small 'hello' to Lyle, whom instantly returned it.

"What for?"

"We want to give you a make-over!" The cat got a confused look, causing the porcupine to sigh. "Um, hel-lo! _Huge _party tonight remember?" She still looked utterly lost. Slapping her hand to her forehead, the porcupine giggled. "Ooh! Right! We didn't tell you because you went to Karnia the other night! Dr. Shrunk is throwing a 'welcome' party for K.K. Slider. Apparently the dog will be staying here in the city for a while – something about lost inspiration, and needing to think or whatever. We want to make sure you look cute! U-Uh.. not that you aren't already..." Labelle blushed from embarrassment. She didn't mean to insult her – seriously.

Katrina rolled her eyes and nodded. "Alright, alright! I'm coming. Will you be there tonight, then?" She turned to Lyle, and he smiled brightly, nodding. Feeling comforted at the thought, the cat rose from her seat and sighed. "I'll stop sleeping on your chair then. Bye-bye!"

"Harriet wants to see you first," Labelle informed quickly, giggling.

Waving her paw at Lyle, Katrina turned towards the exit and hurried out, intent on making this as fast as animally possible.

Lyle turned back to his papers, swiftly beginning to stack them once more. "So? Party. Gussying-up. Real reason? Bang?"

Labelle just giggled, clasping her paw onto the older animal's shoulders. "Ooh! I just wanted to see if I could get her a little closer to you-know-who!"

What Lyle said next actually managed to shock her. Big time.

"Fox. Skunk. Which one?"

* * *

–

Wednesday  
12:59 P.M.  
Carniven City

–

* * *

Katrina groaned as she walked into GracieGrace, feeling rather exposed without her headdress on. She was so used to hiding her sleek, black fur that she had cringed the very moment the accessory left her features. Harriet had gone all-out on her hair – it was tied up into a beautifully brushed pony-tail, equipping a long, blue ribbon as it's hair tie. She felt like a doll...

"Over here!" Labelle waved her hand from the far side of the store, where she had obviously just finished up with a costumer – well, by the look of her hand full of bells, anyways. "I got approved by Gracie to let you wear one of her designs tonight!"

Katrina tilted her head a bit, eyes widening. She'd never worn such clothing.. (everything here was insanely priced). "Seriously?"

"Yup!" Labelle motioned for the cat to follow as she whisked herself towards one of the designs near the side of the shop. It was a lovely white gown.. it looked more like a wedding dress than an every-day thing to wear. "This is a 'cake shirt'." She snatched the silk item off display and practically shoved it at the other. "Go in the back and change! Okay?"

"Alri-"

"Katrina!" Both girl's heads turned to see Redd standing in the doorway. He had a black book gripped in his hand – a large symbol painted out on the front. Walking towards her, he thrust the book at her, smiling brightly. "Here you go! One gypsy book for the fortune-telling she-cat!"

"Ooh! Thanks!" Katrina hugged the book to her chest, along with the cake shirt. "This is really going to help me out!"

"No prob-" Redd cut off, his face going into complete shock. For the first time just then, he finally noticed the cat's new make-over. And needless to say, his cheeks once again tinted to match his name. "L-Look, it was no big deal, okay! I-I'll just see you tonight at the party.." Well, he guessed she was going by the looks of her. No one got ready in such a quick manner unless they had something to do.

And as quick as that, the fox had run out the door again, leaving the cat behind in confusion.

"Weird," Katrina muttered, running into the back of the store to change. She'd have to study her book sometime after the party, she supposed.

Labelle sighed as she looked back at the entrance that Redd had gone though, smirking. "Ooh. I see what Lyle meant..." Crossing her arms, she quirked her brow slightly. "Katrina is really oblivious.."

* * *

Katrina looked at herself in the mirror, puffing out her cheeks slightly. "I look li-li-like a..."

"Beautiful animal," Labelle finished before the other could, nodding her head slowly. "Gracie would be proud.."

At that sentence, the fortune-teller felt a small sweat drop run down her cheek. "What do I care what Gracie would think? I've never even met that giraffe," she muttered, but knew better than to voice the opinion. If an animal ever heard even one negative thing about Gracie, it was likely the gossiper would get torn apart. She was an idol to all. Even males. "But what now? The party isn't for, like, five more hours!"

"Sooo, go get a shoe-shine!" Labelle nodded once more. "Shoes that sparkle make everything better!"

"But I had one just not long ago..."

"The more the better! Just goooo!" The porcupine grabbed the cat's hands, forcing her towards the entrance of the building.

Katrina was rather confused as to why it mattered so much what she looked like. The party was about K.K. Slider being welcomed into the city, right? Ugh... why were her friends so weird?

* * *

–

Wednesday  
3:46 P.M.  
Carniven City

–

* * *

"No crime in getting something to eat first," Katrina muttered to herself, throwing away the last of the peaches she hadn't finished. It was nice of Harriet to let her come back and eat some of her fruit – especially since she was supposed to be finishing up her looks for the party. No matter that it took her about two hours to eat right? She was all for taking her time. The party apparently wasn't until five anyways. She had time.

Katrina's eyes trailed through the city, then landed on the steps Kicks usually stood on. Sure enough, the skunk was sitting there, awaiting his next costumer. She didn't know why, but her heart may have swayed a small bit at the sight of him.

Padding up to the animal quickly, the fortune-teller put on a bright smile. "Hey! Kicks! I'm glad your here today! W-Would you mind giving me another shoe-shine!"

"Of course not!" Kicks took his gaze away from the animals that were aimlessly wandering the city, not hesitating to stare at the cat when he saw her. His jaw dropped for a slight second, and his cheeks slowly began to burn pink. "K-Katrina.. you... you look... w-wow.."

Katrina laughed a bit, shaking her head. "Ah, thank you! Compliments to Harriet and Labelle, I suppose. They forced me to get all up-done for the party tonight – no matter that it's completely focused on K.K." She rolled her eyes, sighing.

"W-Well... they did a wonderful job," he muttered breathlessly, shakily hopping down from his stoop. "I-I'll get your shoes to where they match your look...?"

"Please and thank you." Katrina smiled and sat down on the step, smoothing her dress down before-hand.

"Awright! I'll have those shoes a'shinin quicker than a whip!" Kicks smiled sheepishly and brought out his cleaning cloth, draping it over her high-heels. Moving the cloth over the surface of her shoes for a bit, he quickly whipped it away, taking a step back so she could get off the stairs. "There! And don't worry, it's on the house again!"

"A-Are you sure!?" Katrina stood up and hopped down beside him, her eyes going dull for a moment. "I don't want to be a burden – I'll pay!"

Kicks looked down for a moment, twiddling his thumbs. "Y-Your never a burden, Miss Katrina..."

"As long as you say so," Katrina said brightly, clasping her paws together. Suddenly, she got a curious look. "Oh! Will you be at the celebration tonight?"

Kicks frowned a bit. "Unfortunately, no. I have to head over to Karnia again today – Navigale wanted to see me and ask me about something. Said it was important, so I thought I should go."

"O-Oh..."

"B-But.. um, Miss Katrina... would you mind doing me a favor some time around?"

"Sure! What is it?"

"U-Um... since I-I won't get the chance to tonight.." Kicks' cheeks burned red beneath his mixture of dark and light fur, his thumbs twiddling a slight pace more quickly. "Will you... promise to dance with me some time?"

Katrina's heart sang.

* * *

–

Wednesday  
5:39 P.M.  
Carniven City

–

* * *

Katrina couldn't help but to stare at all the animals – and a few humans – that were dancing around the plaza. Music had been blasted on the speakers as soon as K.K. Slider had made his arrival, and naturally every other animal – or human – that had been here jumped in to celebrate with everyone.

It was exciting, she had to admit. Dr. Shrunk certainly knew how to throw a welcome party – surprisingly. The other surprising thing was how dark it got around this early of a time. The city always got a bit darker, a lot faster, because of the tall buildings that shadowed it. It looked like pure night-time here, other than the bright lights that were strung up. But, oh well, most animals who were here enjoyed the darkness.

"This is great!" Labelle jumped up beside Katrina, clasping her paw onto her friend's shoulder. "I mean, seriously! Look at everyone! It looks like a party mob or something!" The porcupine let out a quick laugh, shaking her head. "Hopefully no one gets run-over by anyone else."

Katrina scoffed, shaking her head. "I doubt _that _would happen!" After a small pause, she giggled. "I wish Kicks were here though – he acts so hilarious in big crowds!"

Labelle rose her eyebrow a bit, mentally going crazy with laughter. "Oh, I see. I wish I could see that. The next best person _is _here though!"

"Who?"

"Redd! You should have seen him, he was trying to sell his merchandise around the front. He _sold out_, Katrina! _Him_!"

Katrina's eyes widened, her mouth going into sort of an 'O' shape. It was amazing what that sly fox could do.. sheesh. Shaking her head, she turned her attention from Labelle, gazing at all the animals – and humans – that were here. The only ones she could identify were Lyle, Kapp'n, K.K. Slider, Harriet, Genji, Dr. Shrunk, that Oid from the auction house (she could never remember his name! Ugh..), the Resetti brothers, and, naturally, Redd.

She wasn't surprised to see him lounging around by the front, still with his victorious smile.

"I think I'm going to go see what he's up to," Katrina muttered, moving from Labelle's grip and making her way towards the fox – being sure to wave at the few animals – and humans, she reminded herself – she passed on the way there. "What are you doing? I thought you'd be dancing."

Redd looked over at the sound of her voice and smirked. "Your one to talk kitty cat." He crossed his arms and examined her for a moment, his eyes getting a bit of a devious glint. "Hm, you know, if it weren't for the fact that you annoy me to death – I would almost say you look beautiful."

Katrina felt her cheeks redden beneath her fur. "Sh-shut up! Don't play these games with me, meanie!" She crossed her arms, letting out a 'hmph' noise. "I swear, every time I make conversation, you have to twist it around to embarrass me some how."

"I did embarrass you earlier, did I?" Redd pointed out, curling his tail behind him. "And besides, I was only being _honest_, Katrina."

"Y-yeah, whatever!" The fortune teller was silent for a moment, then glanced over at the fox. "You know, you really didn't have to run home to get that book for me earlier. I could have waited until tomorrow."

Redd shrugged nonchalantly. "I said it wasn't a problem. Besides, I want to know what my love fortune is, you know? After all, I paid you and everything."

"A-Ah, I see. Well.. thanks again." He simply nodded, causing another silence to engulf them. However the swift sound of a voice broke it – K.K. Slider's.

They both turned to look up at the fountain, where the white dog had perched himself, guitar rested in his lap. "This goes out to all those wonderful couples out there – and to those who helped arrange this party for me. Thank you." He glanced down at his instrument. "This is a song I like to call 'I Love You'"

K.K. Slider began to strum the strings on his guitar, a soft – but not all-together unpleasant – sound escaped his finger-tips, echoing into the darkened plaza.

"Katrina..." The cat turned at the sound of her name, to see the fox staring at her intently. "Do you want to dance with me?"

Katrina's face tinted a bit more, her facial expression becoming a mix of surprise and nervous-ness. "I-I really don't know how to dance..." It was true. She had two left feet... which wasn't very appealing when it came to stepping on others toes.

"I'll lead," he insisted, holding out his paw for her to take.

Had it been any other time than now, she would have spat some sarcastic remark at the fox and ran off, and the next day it would be taken as a joke. But somehow, she found herself placing her paw in his. And somehow, she found herself being led into a wonderful ball-room styled dance among a crowd of other animals that attempted to dance. Most of all... she_ somehow_ felt her heart sing at that moment.

Which could prove to be a bit of a... big problem.

* * *

**[Sorry it took a while! Fanfiction absolutely refu****sed to let me log on/update -sigh- Anyways, I hope this chapter isn't too rushed or anything. Once again, I brought myself to type at two in the morning.. -headdesk- -- Also, this was a Katrina/Redd bonding chapter, since the last one was more of a Katrina/Kicks bonding chapter xD I'm planning to start mixing both in a little more.]**

**--Thanks for the positive feedback I've gotten! :D I feel all inspired, he-he!**


	5. Telling Labelle the Truth

_I don't own Animal Crossing, or it's characters!_

_Warning: More time-jumps! D:_

* * *

-

Thursday  
8:10 A.M.  
Carniven City

-

* * *

"So, where did they mention where K.K was planning to stay?" Katrina looked up at Lyle curiously, her head cocking to the side slightly. She'd tried to forget the party yesterday for a few obvious reasons, but the question kept sneaking into her head. Only two people actually had lofts above their stores here... so...

"Dr. Shrunk offered to house him for a while. Bang." Lyle shrugged his shoulders, stacking a few papers on his desk. "Lyle feels sorry for the dog."

"No kidding." Katrina sighed and leaned back in the chair she was sitting in, letting out a slight laugh. "I'm sure they'll have fun, though. What with the mixture of horrible jokes and amazing songs – it should be a really amusing mad house."

"Lyle has to agree with that." The weasel stopped his task and turned to glance at her. "What's the real reason you decided to stop by? Lyle is sure it wasn't just to talk about K.K. Bang."

"Oh! I was planning to ask if you had any plans this upcoming Saturday?"

"That depends... why? Bang."

"Oh, well, it's Harriet's birthday, and I'm throwing a surprise party for her. Which is part of the reason I've been avoiding her – well, other than when I have to see her anyways." Katrina coughed into her paw, slightly nervous. "I actually didn't remember until I got home yesterday... I felt really bad."

"Hm." Lyle quirked his brow in question, then shrugged it off. He didn't feel like asking why she got so worked up over little things like birthdays. Then again, he was old, what did he know? "Lyle isn't doing anything. Let him know when and where this party is, and he'll be there. Bang."

"Good! I'll let you know as soon as I figure it out!" She heard him sigh in disbelief. Quickly, she continued. "I... haven't planned anything out yet. I was hoping that Labelle would help me."

"Of course. Bang. Well, keep Lyle listed and let him know when things are ready. Until then, though, you'd better go. We're about to open. Bang." Lyle pointed to the door quickly, chuckling under his breath. He was being good-humored in kicking her out – but she knew she'd better go.

"Alright, I'll be seeing you. Bye bye!" Katrina smiled, waved to the older animal, and practically skipped out the door. Finally! Something to look forward to.

* * *

Katrina sighed and opened the door to her fortune telling building, walking inside with quick speed. The lights were still off since she'd gone straight to Lyle this morning, but being a cat, that wasn't a problem. Shutting the door behind her, she turned to flip on the lights – but paused. A weird feeling engulfed her senses, causing her fur to stand on end. "Wha-?" She turned around, her eyes scanning the small room.

She should have guessed.

To her right side, a glowing mark was printed across the wall. Seeing this, her eyes widened a bit, and her tail shot straight up in the air. "My God..." It was official – she was utterly freaked out. As fast as she could, she turned around and snapped the lights on. As soon as the switch turned on, the weird sensation disappeared, and she didn't even have to turn around to know that the symbol had disappeared.

Drawing in a sharp breath, the cat leaned her forehead against the door, closing her eyes. "I have to find out what's going on.."

Three things was on her mind -

She needed to tell someone about this.

The book she'd received from Redd needed to be opened.

And perhaps she should close for today as well...

* * *

"Labelle! I need to talk to you!" Katrina burst through the doors of GracieGrace, practically struggling to get more oxygen into her lungs. She looked like she'd ran a whole marathon – it was hard to believe she'd only ran from not even a mile away.

"What's wrong!?" Sensing the cat's urgency, Labelle turned away from her costumer, which didn't make that animal all-too happy, and approached the other. "Do you want to come to the back to discuss this, or can it be said in public?"

Katrina pondered for a moment, then groaned. "Let's go to the back." Last thing she wanted was to be considered insane.

"Okay! Follow!" Labelle eagerly turned around, her little paws scuttling against the floor as she made her way to the back of the store. Katrina followed quietly, trying to hold back laughter to the fact some of the costumers were annoyed about their sales-woman running off and leaving them for the time being. Honestly, shoppers could be utterly self-centered at times.

Or maybe it was the other way around. Who cared?

Labelle paused at a door that rested on the back wall, carefully cycling through the keys that were hung around her waist. After a moment, she made a small 'aha' sound and lifted one up to the knob, twisted it until a small click could be heard. Both animals piled in to the small storage room – avoiding some of the boxes that stood to the side.

"Sorry for the mess, Miss Gracie got a few shipments early. They won't be sold until next year." The porcupine closed the door after Katrina entered, locking it behind them. Turning to face her friend, she tilted her head. "So, what did you need to talk about?"

"Ah, well, you see..." Katrina kept her back to Labelle, twirling her thumbs absently. "I'm kinda, well.... um..."

"I really don't have all day."

"I'm being stalked!" The words had come out of the cat's mouth before she could prevent it, and she immediately regretted the way she'd worded her statement.

"What!?" Labelle's jaw dropped in shock, and Katrina could swear she'd never seen anyone's eyes become wider. "By who!? Oh my God, we can call the cops! If your being stalked by some perverted male, that could be a really bad thing! Eek!? What if it's a murderer!?"

"Labelle!" Katrina hissed the other animal's name out angrily. "You didn't let me finished!" Her friend instantly shut up. "I'm being stalked... by a symbol."

Labelle looked dumb-founded. "....Um, what? Have you been getting enough sleep lately, Katrina? Your not losing it are you?"

"Look, I know how that sounds, but I swear, I know what I saw. What I've _seen_." Katrina was beginning to sound a bit hopeless. She knew she must be making herself sound completely insane, but it's not like she can figure this out on her own. Still, she figured she could have looked at the book before running off to her friend.

"Okay... so, let's pretend that this is possible. What do you mean 'stalked' by a symbol?"

"I mean that wherever I go, this symbol appears there. I've seen it on walls, readings, and inside my crystal ball."

"I see. When was the first time you saw it?"

Katrina got a thoughtful look. "Hm... It was when Redd asked me for a love reading. I tried to see into my ball, and that was when the symbol popped up. I didn't know what it meant, so I brushed it off at first. But then it started appearing in my room, so I asked Redd to give me this book back I'd handed over to him a couple years ago. I haven't look through it yet, though."

"Your not making this up, are you?" Katrina shook her head, causing Labelle to get a skeptical look. After a moment, the porcupine nodded. "Alright then, how about this. Tomorrow night, I can come to your shop and we can look through the book together – hopefully work this out, you know? We'll go from there."

"Thank you, Labelle! I was afraid you'd think I was crazy!" Katrina clasped her paw onto the Labelle's, her eyes gleaming with self-triumph. The porcupine just laughed in return, shaking her head.

"Hey, you believed me when I told you ants were going to take over the universe one day, I can believe you about this! But, hey, I really need to get back to work. We'll talk more about this after business hours tomorrow, okay?"

"Alright! Oh, and before I go... would you mind helping me organize a surprise party for Harriet this Saturday?"

"A party? Sure! What do you need me to do?"

Katrina coughed into her paw, an innocent look crossing her features. "I'll get back to you on that... hehe!"

* * *

-

Thursday  
3:12 P.M.  
Carniven City

-

* * *

Katrina hadn't noticed how horrible the weather today – which would explain the empty stool where Kicks usually worked. She actually felt pretty down about him not being here, she was looking forward to speaking to him again. He always seemed to have a bright attitude... which she could use with all her stress right now.

Katrina came to a stop as she reached the fountain in the middle of the city, slightly leaning her head over the side to stare down into the water. Like most cats, she feared the wet liquid, but she couldn't help but notice how clear and beautiful it was. Plus, the sky reflected in it so well... One could see the clouds moving, even.

"Hey there, kitty cat." A deep voice spoke out behind her, causing the cat to turn around. Redd stood there, his paws shoved into the pockets of his work uniform. Upon seeing him, she just smiled and turned back to the fountain.

"Hey."

"Something wrong?" Redd walked up, taking a position next to her. "I've been worried about you... your shop has been closed for two days now and all, so I figured something was bothering you."

"Oh, I've just been.. busy, is all. Or, the opposite, actually. I needed some time off." Katrina shuffled nervously – she was still embarrassed about yesterday. Being near the fox had become less of a pain, and that thought scared her. She didn't want to become friends with him... but everything was happening a bit quickly. Now that she thought about it, she may have been friends with him for a long time now. But how long?

"That takes a lot off my shoulders, then." Redd chuckled a bit. Truthfully, he really had been quite worried about her. Turning his head to face her, a smile spread on his usually sly features. "You know, you _still _owe me a love reading."

"I know, I know. I'm trying my best to figure out what that symbol meant, I promise! In fact, I've never been more stressed about finding something out."

Redd quirked his brow in question. "Why is that?"

"I just..." Katrina paused. She couldn't tell him the real reason – Labelle may have taken an understanding, but he would _really _think she had gone crazy. "I don't like disappointing my costumers. A-And you already paid and everything, so I should stick to my word as a fortune teller!"

"As a gypsy," Redd corrected with a smirk, causing the cat to roll her eyes. Only a brief pause interrupted them before he spoke again. "I'm glad you haven't given up. Because I really want to know what it means."

Katrina took a risk. "Why the sudden interest in your romance life, Redd? Are you getting anxious or something?"

"No... not really. I've finally found someone I'm interested in, is all." Katrina's breath caught in her throat when she heard him say this. Was she supposed to care?

No.

Then why did she?

"Who?" Katrina straightened her posture, turning towards Redd. Her ear twitched slightly as he shifted in discomfort – was it wrong of her to ask?

"Um..." Redd pushed away from the fountain as well, matching her angle so that he could face her straight-on. "It's hard to say. I wouldn't want to make an idiot of myself, so if you want to know, your going to have to figure it out."

"I hate when you say things like that," Katrina muttered in agitation, crossing her arms. Redd just smiled, chuckling. She could swear her cheeks turned fifty different shades of pink beneath her black fur. "What's so funny?"

"Nothing." Redd's signature sly look finally returned, causing the cat to squirm slightly. She felt so weird when he looked at her like that – like she was a toy he was planning to play with. Before she could act on it, though, the fox had leaned down and pressed his lips against her cheek, causing her eyes to widen in shock.

"R-Redd!?"

"Sorry, couldn't help it," he muttered, suddenly turning away from her. "I'll see you around." It was like he didn't want her to say anything, because he started walking before she could so much as throw a 'good-bye' to him. However, she may have registered a small smile on his face before he left.

But at the moment, only one thing was running through her mind...

_'What just happened...!?'_

* * *

-

Thursday  
8:02 P.M.  
Carniven City Bus Transportation

-

* * *

Katrina lazily plopped down into one of the seats on the bus, noting that the driver was blabbing away to a penguin that was sitting up front – she also noted that the penguin's name was Cube, a regular costumer she had from week to week. He lived in Karnia with Navigale.

Katrina was also pretty sure Genji was in the back of the bus, so she waved at him quickly before turning her head to look out the window. The city lights flew by like birds as the bus gained speed – making it's usual stops to each town.

They'd already gone by Cherlik, Bershire, Jerton, and Abercove. Their next stop was none-other than Amberton, followed by her own town. She closed her eyes as the bus came to a stop, the doors snapping open rather loudly. She heard a few of the passengers exit, and a few enter.

In the end, though, they were just more passer-bys.

Katrina turned her head when she felt someone sit next to her. "Hn? Kicks?" The cat blinked a few times, trying to make sure she wasn't having a hallucination. "Hey.. What are you doing here?"

"Hello!" Kicks smiled brightly, swishing his tail in excitement. "A-Ah, I'm stopping by a few towns to pick up supplies I need. The weather is sunny tomorrow, so I'm stocking up. Shouldn't you be working right now?"

"I didn't open today. I figured a little break wouldn't hurt. So, did you have a nice day off? The weather was so cloudy today, you could barely tell it was day-time!"

"I spent most of the day sleeping." Kicks laughed a bit, shaking his head. "I couldn't help it – I was so tired!"

"I wish I could sleep all day." Katrina got a dreamy gaze in her eyes, but quickly snapped out of it. She heard the skunk laugh, but he tried to cover it up by holding his paws over his mouth. Once he'd finished his little joy fit, she crossed her legs, sighing. "Hey, do you want to come to a party on Saturday? It's for Harriet."

"Her birthday right?" Katrina nodded. "Then I'd love to come! Just let me know the details by tomorrow."

"How did you-"

"Labelle called me earlier."

"Ah, I see." Katrina rolled her eyes. That porcupine was quick to get to her job, that was for sure. However, the power of sleep began to get the best of her, and she raised her paw up to yawn. It wasn't even late – but with how long she'd been staying up the past few days.. she was surprised she made it this far without passing out.

Katrina didn't even try to stop herself as her head dropped onto Kicks' shoulder, her eyes drooping shut. She could sense the skunk's surprise at first, but he seemed to calm down after a moment.

In fact, Kicks smiled at this. "I'll wake you up when the bus arrive at your town, okay?"

"Deal," she muttered in reply, before everything went black. Tomorrow was going to be a very, very, very busy day.

* * *

**[I know this one is shorter than my others, but I just wanted to finally get this chapter in here before FFN died out on me again. And I'm sorry for the wait – Fanfiction wouldn't let me upload anything for a while, then when I realized it finally would, we had to get a new computer. So, finally, I've gotten a spare moment to finish this. Phew...]**


	6. Plans, Plans, and More Planning

_I don't own Animal Crossing, or it's characters._

_--If anyone knows what type of animal Dr. Shrunk is, please tell me xD I'm a little confused by him. He looks like an alien to me.. -insert nervous giggle here-_

* * *

_-_

Friday  
6:40 A.M.  
Carniven City

–

* * *

Katrina made her way towards the city's theater, the Marquee, and placed a few knocks on it. She still needed to make sure everyone knew about Harriet's party this Saturday, and asking K.K. Slider to perform for them would only sweeten the deal. Thank goodness that talented dog had stopped to stay here for a while.

"Dr. Shrunk? Are you there?" Katrina called out after a moment of having no answers. She knew this was basically his home, since he had a few bedrooms above his performing level, so she was pretty sure he barely ever left. Within a few moments, much to her joy, the door swung open to reveal an extremely short animal, his hair sticking out with the craziness of never being brushed. Honestly...

"Ah! Miss Katrina!" Dr. Shrunk clasped his hands together in glee. "Is there something I can help you with? Learning an emotion perhaps?"

Katrina sweat dropped. "U-Um, no thanks. I have no trouble expressing myself freely. I just needed to speak with you and Slider for a moment. Inside, if you don't mind?" She threw a hasty glance at Harriet's shop, as if she expected the poodle to pop up out of no where.

"Oh, yes, please come in! I'm sure that wacky musician will be glad you dropped by!" Katrina sighed at his words, following him into the Marquee. Yeah, sure, K.K was the wacky one...

"Thanks," she muttered meekly, looking around the lobby. It was pretty plain – red wallpaper, with solid tan-ish flooring. **(Is that right? :( ) **There was a small booth near the actual theater entrance, which she assumed was where the ticket worker took her station. A small staircase was off to the side – which led up to the small bedrooms in the building.

Dr. Shrunk made his way to the stairs and poked his head to looked up them for a moment. "K.K.! We have a visitor!" There was nothing but silence for a moment, but shortly after, a small door closing echoed in the hall, and then the sound of paws coming down stairs.

From the area emerged a somewhat-tall, white, and attentive dog. She had to admit, Slider looked a little weird without his guitar strung around his neck. "Hey, cat," he motioned towards Katrina and smiled brightly, analyzing her for a moment. "What'cha need?"

Dr. Shrunk got a curious look as well, and the cat took a deep breath. "I was wondering if you guys could help me out? I'm planning a surprise party for Harriet, and it's tomorrow. So, I need some help with music," she shot a look at K.K. "-and decorations." This time her look went to Shrunk. Both of the animals exchanged glances, then smiled.

"I'm up for it," Slider replied, nodding his head in a matter-of-fact way. "Harriet has been a loyal listener of my music for a while now. A dog like her deserves a special birthday."

Dr. Shrunk nodded in agreement. "Definitely!" He plastered a smile on his face and started clapping his hands. "We'll start the preparations immediately! Where do you want this party held?"

"I was thinking in the square out there," Katrina replied, her excitement rising. For a moment, she forgot all her troubles. "I'll tell Labelle to take her out today while you set up, and keep her out for a while tomorrow. The party, I think, should be around five. That way it's not too hot to be outside, but no one is tired yet."

"Done deal!" Slider started making his way back towards the stairs. "I'll go work on a song for her, so I'll be ready for it. Let me know if you need anything else, cat."

"Thanks K.K.! This is a big help!" Katrina clasped her paws together. "You too, Dr. Shrunk!"

"No thanks needed! We'll have everything ready in due time. Good luck with the rest of your planning." Shrunk and Slider both waved at her, moving about their business to go straight to work. Of course, the Marquee had to open soon, but it's not like they were ever busy...

* * *

The moment Katrina stepped out of the theater, her eyes went over to a skunk that was already setting up on his usual post. Various shining tools were sprawled around him, and he seemed to be intently thinking about something. He just sat there, staring at them. This caused to fortune teller to perk her ears – trying to see if she could even hear him breathing.

"Um... Kicks?" She approached him quietly, like a girl would walk up to a frightened child. The skunk jumped from the sudden voice and turned around. Once he laid eyes on her, his cheeks lit up red, and he scratched his ear nervously.

"O-Oh, hi, Katrina!" Kicks shifted his weight, smiling shyly. "How are you today?"

"Busy," she replied with a sigh, shaking her head. Even though she'd closed her shop for a few days – which was more-or-less causing animals to spread gossip – she was still swamped with work. It was ridiculous!

"Still planning the party?" Kicks tilted his head slightly, and she merely nodded at his words. "Well, if you need any help, I'm up for it. And Labelle has done a lot of planning already."

Katrina's ears perked. "What?"

"Oh, she didn't tell you? She kept mentioning that she thought you were too busy, so she's already gotten refreshments, cake, birthday presents... a lot of things." Kicks noticed her skeptical look and he laughed sheepishly. "She kept telling me to do a bunch of things too – so I know what she's been up to."

Katrina nodded. "That takes a lot off my shoulders. I'll have to thank her later."

Kicks got a worried look suddenly, his eyes going down to his feet. "Um... M-Miss Katrina, can I ask you something?" The cat got a curious look, and didn't hesitate to nod. He took a moment before continuing. "Is something... bothering you lately? You seem a little distant."

Katrina got a surprised look – she didn't think anyone would have noticed her change in attitude. Ever since that symbol had appeared, she must admit, she'd been a bit on edge.

"I-I mean, it's just that you've closed your shop for a while. And you always seem a bit more tired when you run into me. H-have you been staying up late or something?"

Katrina got a slightly nervous look. Should she tell Kicks about her situation? No... something inside her told her she didn't want to risk making him think she was insane. Why? She didn't know. She better just leave it to Labelle and herself, though. "I've just... been feeling a bit sick lately?" She muttered lamely, avoiding his gaze.

Kicks got an even more worried look at this. God, she was just a terrible liar, wasn't she? To make matters worse, his facial expression was beginning to make her feel extremely guilty. "I-I see... well, if you ever need anything, you can ask me, okay?" He put a weak smile on his face, causing her to mental kick herself.

Then, without thinking, she clasped her hand over his. "Hey, don't worry okay!" She smiled brightly. "I'll be fine. And the only reason my shop is closed is because I need some time to... catch up with things. Everything will be back to normal soon!"

The skunk's eyes widened, and the tinted color appeared on his cheeks once more. "O-Okay, Miss Katrina! Just, remember... w-what I said!" He shuffled his feet for a moment, shying away from her a bit. "And, um... I just... thank you – for speaking to me."

Katrina smiled and took a step back from him, although she oddly didn't want to. "Thanks for letting me blab!" She waved her paw in the air. "See you soon, Kicks! Hope you'll be at the party!" He nodded eagerly, and she turned to make her way to GracieGrace, but was stopped by him once more.

"Wait! Katrina..." Kicks was silent for a moment as she turned to look back at him. After a moment, he smiled. "Would you – err – go somewhere with me on Sunday? I know you already have a busy weekend and what-not, but..."

"Sure!" Katrina broke in before he could finish, which caused him to get a surprised look. "Sounds fun! Just let me know when and where, okay?"

Kicks returned her smile, and shyly attempted to pull his hat over his eyes. "Y-Yeah... just meet me by the fountain around two that day. I don't mind closing down early... and the weather calls for sun."

"Alright!" Katrina pulled off a small peace sign, oblivious to just how embarrassed the skunk was. "We'll meet up at two, by the fountain, on Sunday! Got it!"

* * *

–

Friday  
9:09 A.M.  
Carniven City, GracieGrace

–

* * *

Katrina couldn't quite remember how she'd ended up going back to her own shop after her chat with Kicks, considering her true destination had been to come to GracieGrace in the first place, but whatever. Now, she stood in front of Labelle, continuously thanking her for setting up most the party – even though she'd failed to notify her.

"For the millionth time, Katrina, it was nothing! I figured you'd be pretty wrapped up with your stalker and your love life."

"You have no idea-" Katrina cut off and got a dumb-founded look. "Love life?" She echoed, tilting her head. What was this porcupine talking about?

Labelle looked at her as if she were crazy. After a moment, she just shook her head and sighed. "Look, never mind. But now that you've expressed your gratitude, are we still on for tonight? You know, to go through that book of yours?"

Even though Katrina was still slightly curious about what Labelle was talking about, she let it slide. Simply moving on to her next comment, she nodded. "Yeah. We should still meet up. What do you say you come over to my shop around nine? That way everyone will leave us alone. Hopefully Redd will be gone, too."

Labelle held in a laugh. "He just loves to mess with you, doesn't he?" Katrina groaned somewhat and shook her head, her ears flattening.

"Don't remind me..."

"He-he! Well, either way, I'll see you then! I have to get back to work now, though. If Gracie catches me talking away, I'm going to get in a lot of trouble. So, out you go!"

"Now I know how you treat your costumers," Katrina retorted jokingly, and made her way to the door. Labelle rolled her eyes behind her and turned to face a long-neglected costumer. The bunny had worked up quite an attitude waiting for assistance.

Before she spoke to the costumer, though, she turned to the cat and smiled. "Oh! And I invited Navigale!"

Katrina just gave her a thumbs up.

* * *

–

Friday  
1:38 P.M.  
Carniven City

–

* * *

Katrina sat on the edge of the fountain, silently watching as the clouds passed by. They moved so slowly, yet if one blinked, they could be gone in a heart-beat... It was odd. She had longed realized that an animal had sat down beside her, but she was too absorbed in her thoughts. It only took about three seconds for the other's jittering to cause her to sigh, though.

"_What _are you doing?" Katrina got a questioning look, turning to face a red fox. He was grinning at her sinisterly, as if he'd just caused a big crime to happen. This made a sweat drop come to her features.

"Just sitting! You know, you can stay extremely still for a long time... no wonder you can stare into that stupid ball all day."

"Hardy-har-har." Katrina rolled her eyes and looked back to the square, where animals were still busying themselves with shopping and such. Labelle had convinced Cube, a frequent buyer and friend of both of them, to take Harriet sight-seeing around other cities. It'd been hard convincing her to close the shop for the next two days, but they managed.

"So, am I invited to this party your throwing?" Redd broke the silence once more, his devilish features betraying that he was planning to come whether she answered no or not.

"As long as you don't steal anything," she answered, crossing her legs. The scarf on her skirt jingled as she did this, and for a moment, she let the bells on the scarf ring before cupping her paw over them. "I'm counting the presents to make sure the same amount is there when she opens them."

"I feel so insulted."

"You should."

Redd was quiet once more, before standing up. "Ah, well, my break is over. I better get back to the shop." Well, that was fast. Usually he lived to annoy her for hours on end. She couldn't say she wasn't thrilled at the thought of him leaving, though. As much as she had, be-grudgingly, become more attached to the fox emotionally, she still didn't like the thought of being around him a lot.

"Out of all the things you could do on break – like, I don't know, eat like normal animals? - you decide to speak with me about absolutely nothing. Your odd."

"I just let to spend time with you," he said in a seductive voice, causing her cheeks to light up red.

Wait, what? What did he just say? There was a small moment of silence between them, though a few eaves-droppers nearby giggled at them. Somehow, Katrina had become a really hot gossip target.

"W-Wha....?" Her voice trailed off as she finally realized he'd started chuckling under his breath. Her eyes narrowed in annoyance, and she was half tempted to throw something at his head. "Are you teasing me!?"

"D-D-D-Duh!" He answered between laughs, hunching over a bit. "You should have seen your face! How classic!"

"You jerk! Get out of here!" Katrina glared daggers at him, about ready to kick the fox in the shin. He just nodded, unable to say anything in his fit of laughter, and made his way back to his shop.

Sometimes that male just made her want to bang her head against a wall...

* * *

–

9:31 P.M.  
Friday  
Carniven City, Katrina's

–

* * *

Katrina paced the room as Labelle went through the book, her eyes squinting at the different symbols printed out on them. She was sprawled on her back, eyes facing up to the ceiling. They'd only been looking for a few minutes, but they hadn't found a single trace of clues.

The fortune teller had described the symbol to her friend, and they had taken a quick look through the book, but after no success, they decided to slow down. It was Labelle's turn to look through it.

"I can't find anything," she muttered in frustration, half tempted to throw the book across the room. She knew better than to tamper with Katrina's things like that, though. The black cat just let out a half-hearted grunt of agreement and shook her head. Labelle took that as a sign of giving up. "What if it means something bad? Like death?"

"I saw it during a love reading, Labelle, not during the apocalypse." Katrina stopped pacing and let her body fall to the ground with a 'thump', grumbling out an 'ow' as she forgot that it would hurt to suddenly throw herself at the ground.

"True. So, you say you saw it when you first did Redd's reading? Well, why is it following you around instead of him, then?"

"I don't know! Maybe it thought he was annoying?" Katrina got a hopeful look, but Labelle rolled her eyes at the accusation.

"Yeah. I'm sure that's it."

"I don't see you coming up with anything," she pointed out, releasing an exasperated sigh. This was getting them no where.

Labelle suddenly sat up quickly, her eyes widening. "Oh! Wait! Put all this together! You saw the sign during _Redd's_ love reading; _you _keep seeing it everywhere; and it's the _one _sign you don't understand! What if... it means something like 'you and Redd are supposed to be together'?"

"That's so cliché." Katrina sighed, shaking her head. "No way. I don't ever see myself with someone like him."

"Well... what if it means you need to help him get together with someone? Or help him in some way? Maybe it doesn't even have to do with love! All we know is that it definitely involves Redd... so why don't you see if anything is bothering him?"

Katrina looked over at her friend and tilted her head, which, mind you, was hard to do while lying on the floor. "It's a start, I guess. But it doesn't feel right... I mean, my fortune teller intuition is telling me this is something much larger, Labelle."

"For now we can only guess though." The porcupine frowned and hopped to her feet. "Why don't we keep trying to look for more signs? Maybe if you read more fortunes, it'll help you. But it should be people you have a strong connection to..."

"Like you?" Katrina got to her feet as well. "And Lyle, Harriet – about everyone here?"

"Yeah! Start reading all of the shop-keeper's fortunes! Even Kicks. Then see if you can find anything out of them. It'll be easier to piece the puzzle together if we know who to look to." Labelle crossed her arms, biting her lower lip. "And maybe it'll even help to take the fortunes of Navigale and Genji."

"Your right... I know! I'll open a booth at the party tomorrow – free fortunes! That way I can get everyone! Even you, okay!" Labelle nodded, and the cat got a triumphant look. "Tomorrow night, our true search for answers begin!"

Labelle smiled brightly, clasping her paws together. "Right! And it'll make it easier to. But, Katrina, can I give you some advice?"

"Sure...?"

"Tell Lyle about this." Katrina was about to ask if Labelle was crazy, but she cut in. "The old thing is wise... he might be able to help us. Really, consider it, okay?"

"...Only if you promise there will be ice cream at the party."

Labelle nodded her head a few times. "Deal. Now, let's get out of here before one of the nocturnal shop-keepers come looking for us. I can't handle any company right now, and I wanna get out of here before Kapp'n starts getting tired. He's a very dangerous bus driver."

Katrina groaned. "No kidding..."

Hopefully things would fall into place. But if Redd really did need 'help' – with love lives or not – what in the world would she be able to do for him? ….Was the fortune even about him?

* * *

**[Yay! My sucky chapter is done xD I'm so proud. Ha-ha. Not really. Anyways, hope it was moderately enjoyable! The sign's true nature will be revealed soon 8D ...Maybe.]**

**--Check out the poll on my profile and tell me whether you think this story should end with Katrina/Redd, or Katrina/Kicks! :D**

**And thank you for the lovely reviews! Also to those who favorited/alerted this story. :3**


	7. Party, Party! Surprise! Part 1

_I don't own Animal Crossing, or it's characters!_

_

* * *

  
_

–

Saturday  
9:00 A.M.  
Carniven City

–

* * *

Katrina didn't know what was making this day the so amazing, but there was certainly a sense of excitement lingering through the air. No doubt it had something to do with the party, but she vaguely wondered why. Not like this was the first time... perhaps it was just because all the City shopkeepers had finally gotten settled in by now, and they were all like one huge family. Either way, it was going to be quite fantastic, if she thought so, herself.

"Hmm!" Katrina grabbed a long banner that read "Happy Birthday" across it, examining the fountain area. It was supposed to hang from one side of the square to the other, but she wasn't exactly sure how to pin it up. Letting out a long sigh, her whiskers quivering slightly, she turned around and tilted her head, trying to see who else was around.

Cube had left earlier to stall Harriet all day – which would be an interesting task, surely – so he was out... too bad, considering he was one of the strongest animals around. Labelle was off to the side critiquing K.K., along with explaining to him what the poodle's favorite song was... God help that dog, he was going to be hearing an ear-full all day. That porcupine was th eonly person Katrina knew that had the guts to annoy a star.

Kicks was helping Dr. Shrunk and Navigale with the cake – whom had so graciously offered to come over early to gelp with things, whilst Genji decided to be lazy and stay in his home 'til it was actually time for the party, tonight.

"Well, great." Katrina placed on a sarcastic smile, shaking her head. She'd ask Lyle to help her, but she knew he was too old for these things – which, that thought jogged her memory to have a little chat with him before the party started.

"Need a hand?" The cat jumped at the sound of a cool, nonchalant voice, and her fur instantly bristled, but she kept her hostile thoughts to a minimum, considering the occasion. Redd came bounding up to her from behind, placing his arm around her shoulder and pulling her closer, a joking look on his face. "You couldn't put that thing up by yourself if you tried, after all. Though watching you fumble with it would be nice... not to mention the thought of seeing you trip over your tail. How amusing!"

Katrina twitched her ears slightly and pushed herself away from him, only causing the fox to chuckle in response. "I don't need help – especially from the likes of you!" A stubborn look passed her face, but it soon faded, coming in term with defeat. "On second thought..."

"Mmhm." Redd smirked and grabbed one end of the banner, walking over to the theatre, and up a ladder that had been pre-stationed there – compliments of Camofrog.

Katrina twitched slightly, but she turned and made her way to the abandoned store – the one Kicks usually used for cleaning. Hopping up on the railing (let's pretend that was there in the game. xD), she took her hands up and reached as high as she could, before pushing the corner of the paper into a loose nail in the wooden walls. Once done, she jumped back down and swiped her paws together, turning towards Redd; whom had done the same.

Looking at the sight, she realized just how ridiculously long the banner was... and the fact it didn't even touch the fountain was just crazy. "Where does Labelle buy this stuff...?" She blinked in a confused way, then shrugged it off, nodding in satisfaction. "Regardless."

Locking eyes with Redd, when noticing he was once again approaching, she tilted her head. "Anything else you want, fox?"

"Eh, not really. Just curious, kitty cat, are you really giving out free fortunes tonight? Your usually greedy... what's the occasion?"

"Ha! _You _calling _me _greedy? Wow." Katrina rolled her eyes, then sighed. "If you must know, it's for personal reasons, but don't go getting too excited. You bug me, and I might just have to make you pay for it." The fox was about to retort back when a certain skunk walked up to them, staring nervously at the ground, as if afraid he was interrupting something. The fortune teller tilted her head to the side and smiled. "Oh! Kicks! Something you want?"

"U-Um, I was just going to make sure we were still going somewhere tomorrow, b-but I'm sorry if I'm interrupting anything, M-Miss Katrina," he squeaked, eyeing Redd nervously. The fox narrowed his eyes; the words he'd thrown out didn't exactly please him.

"Oh. So you two have a date or something? Seems like you have a lot to talk about... sorry for bothering you." Redd scoffed and turned on his heels, making his way back over to the theatre; most likely to go see how Shrunk and the gang were doing.

Katrina stared at him obliviously, then swayed her tail. "What's his problem?" she muttered, then turned towards Kicks. "Yes, of course, I'm still meeting you! Don't go bailing out on me, okay?" She smiled brightly, and the skunk's face lit up – thank goodness for black fur!

"N-No, I wouldn't think of such a thing!" Kicks smiled, shuffled his feet, then backed away slightly. "I-I'll go help finish up..! See you later tonight, Miss Katrina! I'm looking for to getting a fortune!"

* * *

–

Saturday  
1:43 P.M.  
Carniven City

–

* * *

With the city around her still bustling, Katrina stood outside of Lyle's insurance shop, still jittery about revealing her latest issue with him. He was old and wise, but would he really believe something like this? What if he ended up calling an asylum? Getting her put in a straightjacket? Ugh, last thing she needed. But, she'd promised Labelle, and truth be told, she was more afraid of her than she was of any person in a mental institution.

Shaking her head, she went inside, watching as the weasel instinctively came out from the back, eyes wide with curiosity. "Oh, Katrina! What are you doing here? Lyle thought you were helping everyone outside. Bang."

"Oh! I just needed to tell you something is all..." The cat rub her ear nervously, causing the old animal to get an even more curious look; a bit of an interested one, as well. He said nothing, but she could tell by his expression she should continue. "You see, I have a bit of a problem with my fortune telling lately."

"Well, have a seat and tell Lyle all about it. Bang." He motioned to one of the chairs, and she obliged, taking a seat. "Now?"

"Your going to think I'm crazy." Katrina drew in a quick breath. "But here I go..."

* * *

Kicks cupped a hand over his mouth, trying not to laugh as the cake frosting tube was suddenly hit by Dr. Shrunk's hand – which he'd banged on the table in triumph. The contents flew out, hitting against Navigale's face like a toothpaste rocket. At first, she was stunned, and didn't say anything, but after a moment, she let out a shrill scream of agitation.

"You stupid... whatever you are!" Navigale puffed her cheeks out and made as if to tackle him, but the axolotl screeched and quickly jumped out of the way, rapidly screaming out to a certain musician for help.

Labelle turned her gaze over to them and sighed. "Idiots," she muttered in a joking way, then went back to critiquing K.K., which, he was taking it surprisingly well. Talk about being patient.

It didn't last long, though, because eventually Mable – she and Sable had come over to help as well - caught up with them, and after a moment of bonking them both on the heads, she turned them loose, and begrudgingly, they went back to putting decoration on the cake.

The shoe-shiner kept a smile on his face, chuckling under his breath. This group was quite an interesting one. Off to the side, though, he seemed not to notice a certain fox glaring at him...

* * *

Lyle stared at her for a long time. A really long time. Like, the longest time you can possible think of. For a moment, Katrina was actually afraid she'd given the poor man a stroke, but eventually he came out of it, and surprisingly, nodded. "I see, I see. That makes perfect sense. After all, the world of fortune telling is quite mysterious..."

"You mean, you believe me?" Katrina didn't know what was more weird; the fact that he actually believed her that fast, or that he said it made sense. "Even Labelle needed convincing, though, so why...?"

"Lyle knows a lot more about the world than you think," he snapped, causing her to shut up. She remembered never to question someone like him; he was very prideful in himself, aside from the horrible job he had. Seeing this as an invitation to continue, he blinked. "Lyle thinks you have the right idea. If you can figure out who has this symbol in their fortunes, than it's more than likely to narrow things down. A lot. Bang. Lyle wants you to go through with this plan, then once it's been done, bring that porcupine friend of yours and meet me here – we'll think over things together. Bang."

Katrina nodded and let out an 'ah' sound. "Alright... We'll do that then." She didn't know what else to say; she was a little mixed with shock and relief. She didn't even have to ask for him not to say anything, because she knew he wouldn't. Weird as he was, he was still a faithful animal.

"I have one question, though. You said you knew a lot about the world, but you also commented on fortune telling. Lyle, do you know anything about telling fortunes?" The older mammal stared at her in disbelief for a moment, but before he could answer, the sound of something crashing outside caught their attention.

Both of them hurried out the door, and instantly, a sweat drop ran down their foreheads. Navigale had pieces of cake covering her whole body, and so did half the other visitors in the area. Before anyone could say anything, Katrina brought her hand up and sighed. "We have four hours... we'll just make it again."

Oy, things were always weird in this town.

* * *

**Filler chapter; part one of two. I know it's short, but that's because it's supposed to be like a little opening to the actual party... :D Just wanted to update!**

**I am SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO sorry for the delay. D: I didn't intend for that to happen, but things got a little crazy.**

**Either way, I'm planning to pick this story back up – and furthermore, finish it.**

**I've finally gotten my thoughts together about how it's going to end, but it may be a little more unpredictable then you think. ;D Or, maybe not, I dunno, but still.**

**I'll keep the poll open until the last chapter, just to see everyone's opinions. :3**

**Personally, I'm a fan of both pairings, so I don't mind how it ends... but either way, I guess it's my decision, huh? XD Joyous.**

**Lastly, I'll be posting all information about updates and such on my twitter account, which you can find the link to on my profile. After Halloween is over, I'm making it my life's goal to finish the last few chapters of this. (I think I have, like, six or seven left... somewhere around that!)**

**I'm so close. :'D Thanks for all the support so far, and I'm sorry for being a horrible updater!  
Also, big thanks to L100Meganium for telling me what kind of animal Shrunk is. xD A axolotl... wow... xD You know how to pronounce that by any chance? Ha-ha!**

**-LovelyxxMelody**


	8. Party, Party! Surprise! Part 2

_I don't own Animal Crossing, or it's characters!_

_

* * *

_

–  
Saturday  
4:54 P.M.  
Carniven City

–

* * *

Well, it took long enough, but with everyone pulling their forces together – a cake was baked and ready for the celebration to take place that night. Even though Navigale and Dr. Shrunk had to be held away from one-another every now and again, that is. Axolotls didn't get along well with humans, Katrina had realized. Especially not humans like Navi that were hot-blooded.

No siree.

And, even better, she hadn't been disturbed by either Kicks or Redd the entire time – which was fine by her, because she needed the time to think. Tonight was a starting point for her investigation to find out what that symbol meant. Too long it'd been following her, and freaking her out for that matter, so she was glad to know things would start to even out.

If only she knew.

Now they just had to wait one more hour for Harriet to arrive with Cube. Hoorah! Sighing, Katrina was seated on the fountain, pawing through an old drawing book that Labelle had given to her as entertainment. It was full of silly little scribbles the porcupine had done as a child, most of them having to do with clothes, or the classical prince and princess romance that every kid dreams about at some point.

She thought it was pretty cute, truth be told. Now if only she knew where her old drawing books were – though she was never really that good at it. Raising her gaze up from the pages she'd so carefully examined, she locked gazes with a skunk that had swiftly approached her – she figured he was done setting up some of the last minute decorations and needed a break.

Didn't they all!

He hesitated for a moment, then sighed, sitting next to her. He didn't say anything, and simply kicked his feet slowly, gaze locked on the ground below him. Through the little patches of white fur, Katrina could detect hints of red underneath them, but due to him being mostly black-furred, she wasn't exactly sure if that was correct.

"Hello Kicks," she greeted in a friendly manner, figuring it would probably be more of her thing to start a conversation – if he so desired one, that is. He paused and looked up at her, then a bright smile spread on his lips. He nodded in greeting, but didn't say anything. At first she was confused, but then she got an understanding look. She could tell he was barely keeping his eyes open.

Unable to control herself, the cat let out a good-natured laugh, then reached out and took hold of his hat. Before he had time to protest, a sly smirk spread on her features. "Come now, Kicks! You should go get some rest or something before the party starts." She gave the needy creature his hat back, and he chuckled.

"I-I would, Miss Katrina, but I don't want to miss anything!" Well, it was nice to see someone was excited for the right reasons. She was about to respond before she heard another male call out to her.

"Katrina! Will you come help me with these streamers!" Redd practically hissed out his words from the other side of the area, causing all those around them to look at the fox like he was crazy. Which wasn't anything new, obviously. Blinking in confusion, she raised up and made her way over to him, leaving a confused Kicks behind her.

He played with the hat in his paws slightly, frowning. He'd started noticing Redd's hostile behavior towards him ever since he mentioned his "date" with Katrina...

–

"What's with the attitude, can't you just call out like a normal animal!?" Katrina rolled her eyes at the fox before her, but he simply grumbled in reply, going back to the decorations at paw. Feeling no desire to argue with him at the current moment, the cat began to help him, shaking her head in annoyance.

He was acting weirder than usual.

* * *

–  
Saturday  
7:08 P.M.  
Carniven City

–

* * *

Two hours. She'd been spending two hours just telling fortunes to those around her, and still not much luck had gotten to her. So far, she'd found two people that had the symbol in their fortunes; Labelle, and Lyle. Which she found considerably strange considering they were the only two that knew about her ordeal. Was this a way of mocking her or something? Honestly...

Still, she hadn't done everyone at the party – Katrina still had a while to go, that was for sure. But water breaks were always good, and let's just be honest here, that cake was starting to call her name. Literally. She was hearing voices.

Flicking her tail as she walked over to the table set up beside the fountain, she grabbed a piece of the cake and hastily began shoveling it into her mouth – she was never the kind of cat to act lady-like. She'd leave that to Bianca, a saucy wolf that lived, of course, near Navigale.

Her eating – naturally – was interrupted, though, when she felt a small tap on her shoulder. Turning around to face a familiar raccoon, after a moment, she smiled and placed her now empty plate to the side. "Tom?" She cooed in excitement, joy of seeing her long-time friend before her. The male chuckled at her reaction, then practically got a sing-song look, swooning from side to side on his little paws.

"Katrina! It's been quite some time. Ever since you stopped traveling to new towns for your fortunes, I haven't seen you as often. If only you could see what my shop looks like now..." Katrina laughed, nodding. She knew Tom had gotten in a lot of business since humans started merging into their population, and she had to admit, the thought of seeing his shop compelled her thoughts for a moment, but she let them slide.

"Maybe sometime I can come down and see how things are going," she responded, a small smile spreading onto her lips. He simply nodded, then placed a hand on her shoulder, as if willing her to walk with him. She did. He started leading her towards her fortune telling stand she'd set up, a starry look in his eyes.

"Would you mind reading my wealth fortune?" He stopped once he was in front of the booth, and in response, Katrina took her place behind it, already placing her paws on the crystal ball.

"Of course! Just stay still," she commented, her paws moving in a slow motion upon the glass structure. Her gaze went deep into the mists that only she could see, and inside the ball, images came together forming –

the symbol.

Eyes widening momentarily, she almost felt her jaw drop. Labelle, Lyles... and Tom? Why Tom? Trying not to stutter, she looked up at him and flashed a nervous grin. "Your wealth is looking good, Nook, real good." She was lying, considering she didn't know what that actually meant, but it seemed to be a good enough answer for him. Without even giving her another word, he bounded off to go discuss his greedy fortune to Navigale, whom immediately got a bored look.

Trying not to make her confusion noticeable amongst all these visitors, she sucked it up, shaking her head. She had to let this go – she would be able to discuss this with Lyle and Labelle after the party, so best she could do is remain calm until then.

Besides, they were about to start handing presents out to Harriet – she didn't want to miss that, considering she got her friend something very special; a gypsy charm that brought good luck. Whether or not things like that worked were beyond her, but it was a pretty pink gem at the least. It'd match the poodle's style.

Pushing away from her stand and getting up to make her way towards the centering – where everyone was gathering – she was suddenly jerked back when someone grabbed her hand, dragging her in the opposite direction towards the bus stop. Letting out a protesting hiss, she turned to glare at her captor, until she realized who it was.

"Redd?" She questioned in confusion, blinking a few times. The fox didn't respond at first and simply stared at her, then got a defensive expression.

"I know this isn't the right time to bring this up, but I need to talk to you," Redd muttered, as if he were nervous. Swallowing his pride for a moment, he sighed. "Do you... I mean... do you like Kicks? Well, obviously, if your going on a date with him, I just thought – well..."

What the heck? This was something new. Not only the fact he was tripping over his sentences, but the fact he was actually questioning her on something like this. Simply keeping quiet as he continued to ramble on about nothing in particular, unable to find the words to correctly ask what he wanted to, the cat finally reached forward and poked Redd's nose, immediately causing him to shut up.

"Are you jealous?" She inquired, tilting her head to the side. Her ear twitched when Redd's expression became angry from embarrassment. That alone gave her the answer she didn't even realize she was looking for. Hearing a few party poppers go off in the distance, she felt her breath catch in her throat.

Redd's gaze softened as he stared at her – something that rarely ever happened; or, at least, she suspected. Raising his paw up, he molded it to her cheek, causing her whiskers to twitched, and his fur to tickle slightly. He stepped towards her, gaze locked intensely on the cat before him.

"R-Redd?" She managed to squeak out, blinking rapidly. He leaned down, his lips vaguely brushing against hers for a moment. Right when she could have sworn he was about to press them down, he retreated and kissed her cheek, stepping back from her.

"Will you give me another love reading tonight?" He looked off to the side. If it weren't for the red fur he had, she would have been one-hundred-percent sure he was blushing. Opening her throat passage once more, utterly confused, she simply nodded.

Again, Redd brought up his paw and stroked the fur on her cheek, then smirked – though it wasn't the playful one he usually had, but it seemed to be a mere mask... as if he were hiding something important. Something genuine underneath it...

"Let's go give our gifts to Harriet. Then I'll help you finish up for the night." With that, he turned away.

Katrina didn't follow for the longest time... then, she found the feeling in her legs again, and made her way up the steps, to the clearing, where gifts were still being exchanged. Kicks was up next to hand a box over to Harriet – he didn't seem to of even noticed that he'd gone missing.

Tom, however, shot her a questioning look. Katrina simply remained frozen.

* * *

**Don't kill me! I updated!**

**Just so you know, there's a part three to the party, as I decided whilst typing this chapter. So it's not over yet.**

**Redd fans, rejoice.**

**Kicks fans, there will be moments for him too. I promise. XD**

**I must say, I kinda yelled at myself while typing the fluff scene. "LovelyxxMelody, you idiot! Why didn't you make Redd kiss her!?" -insert angry fangirl rampage here-**

**AND. Big thanks to SakuKiba. I read your review today and realized how long ago my last update was, so you officially woke me up from my unannounced hiatus!**

**Review, please! It makes me update faster... no, really, I promise, it does. Cause it makes me feel guilty, and I force myself into writing. xD**


	9. I'm Sorry, You're What?

**I have a reason for updating late, as I've had this chapter ready for some time now. Check down at the bottom as I vent my anger and frustration of the past month. =_=**

_I don't own Animal Crossing, or it's characters!_

_

* * *

  
_

–  
Saturday  
9:10 P.M.  
Carniven City  
–

* * *

Katrina watched as the last of the party-goers said their goodbyes to Harriet and the gang, heading off to the bus to get home before it got too dark to see the roads. Lest the bus driver end up taking them off a cliff – and by all means, the cat wouldn't doubt the possibility of it. She was still hazy on her thoughts though, disabling her from any smart remarks on the subject as Harriet eventually followed after them all, giggling about the very same thing.

Redd had long retreated back into his shop, and she wasn't sure, but she might have seen him sneak out on one of the bus rides back to the town he was staying in – if only she could remember the name. Standing there, staring at the fountain, she actually jumped when she felt a small tap on her shoulder, causing the poor creature behind her to do the same out of habit.

"I – wha – oh! Kicks!" Katrina twitched her ears, turning to face him quickly, a little embarrassed that she'd startled him. Bringing her hand up and scratching her pointed ear, she looked to the side to hide that fact, coughing slightly.

"I... I-I just wanted to say goodnight, Miss Katrina. I didn't mean t-to scare you..." Her feelings soon turned to that of guilt, seeing the skunk pull his hat off, thumbing it with his fingers nervously. She half wanted to tell him to stop staring at the ground, that she wasn't going to eat him if he actually looked up at her.

"It's fine, Kicks. I just zoned out was all. I appreciate the notion." Spreading a smile on her face, her gaze softened. "Goodnight. And thanks for coming here early to help out. I know your on a tight schedule and everything–"

"No, no," he cut in quickly, finally looking up at her and returning the smile. "I was glad to be here. I... I like spending time with t-the people in town. G-Getting to know them better is... fun." She vaguely could tell he was speaking of a specific person, but oblivious nature getting in the way, she took it literally.

"I'm glad," she chimed, giggling. "Now go on, go on! You need to get some sleep. I mean, if it's sunny tomorrow, we have some fun ahead of us tomorrow!" He nodded, and with an incredibly shy aurora practically shining off of him, ran to catch up with the others filling the bus up. The cat watched him go.

* * *

After everyone was successfully cleared from the area, Katrina made haste of getting to Lyles, piling through his door and almost knocking the poor man over as he paced around the room, waiting. Finding time to skid around him before that happened, she heard him making a 'feh!' sound under his breath, but was delayed the lectures thanks to Labelle, whom came in right after her.

Clothes still sullied from a bit of cake she'd had, the porcupine just put on a sheepish grin. "I'll be sure to avoid sitting down," she pointed out, weaving her way around both of them before they had a chance to respond. Lyles rolled his eyes, grumbled a bit, then turned to face the cat.

"Any luck? Bang!"

Taking a moment to realize he was speaking to her, she gasped. "Oh, yes! The fortunes that the symbol came up in belonged to Labelle, yourself, Redd, Tom Nook, and this frog that lives in Navigale's neighborhood. Very moody fellow... I think his name was Camofrog? Something along those lines!"

Labelle ran those names through her head, then shrugged. "I give up. We have nothing in common with those people. Can I go home now?" She sounded incredibly tired – Katrina knew for a fact that a tired porcupine was dangerous news. Attitude wise, that is.

She didn't want a quill to end up in her ear.

"Listen, listen. Surely there's some kind of connection... Let's analyze their movements for the next few days. Bang. Then we can see if there's something strange going on every time one of them enter the city."

"You mean you want us to stalk them?" Labelle questioned bluntly, her gaze rather blank.

"No, no, not stalk! Analyze! Spend time with them! You know... set up friendly group events or something. Anything to get them all in the same place. See what happens. Bang."

"Yes. That'll be easy," Katrina muttered, fully expecting the stern look she got from the elder otter. He had a point though; there was no other way to do this any-who, so she had to suck it up. "Well... isn't the fireworks celebration coming up soon? Like, only a month away? We could set that up..."

"It's some time away, but she has a good point. Between then and now we can just spend individual time with each of the suspects. You know, minus ourselves, since we're in on it." Thank you porcupine obvious. "I, for one, would not mind spending more time with Tom. I want to swindle him into a discount on some of his clothes." Labelle grumbled and glanced to the side.

"Ole Lyles could probably get in touch with Camofrog. He's an old client of mine from the insurance days. Bang."

Katrina wanted to claw one of them then and there, but seeing as she was too tired to fight over this matter, she would come to her senses in the morning and scream and kick. Surely, she would.

"I guess that means I'm stuck with Redd...."

* * *

–  
Sunday  
6:09 A.M.  
Felpaw Hotel, Harren Town  
–

* * *

Katrina sat in her room, staring at the wall of the rented area she was sleeping in. The pretty paper surrounding the area was pink and blue; not the best color choice, in her opinion, but she couldn't expect much else when the owner of said building was a fru-fru. (*sp? Haha!)

Soon, she got up from the bed, making her way to the tiny table that sat in the middle of the room. Random crafting items, such as jewels and golden metal, were thrown about, indicating that she rather enjoyed making her own accessories. Smiling slightly, she started messing around with a few of them, her head cocking to the side.

_Will you give me another love reading tonight?_

That's right... Redd never revisited her stand after that. At the time, for whatever reason, she'd been pretty upset when she'd realized he'd snuck off to leave. After what he'd done, she'd been expecting something – anything! Then, after a while of coming to terms with it, she figured he'd been joking around. Again.

Seeing a small glow to her side, she looked up, unsurprised to see the strange symbol plastered to the wall, brighter than it had once more. Gaze dulling slightly, she pushed Redd from her mind and sighed, twitching her ear. "What do you want from me?" She muttered, wondering secretly in her mind why she was talking to a glowing piece of who-knows-what.

As if her mind weren't clouded enough.

* * *

–  
Sunday  
4:28 P.M.  
Serre Park  
–

* * *

Katrina squeaked as she practically flew off of the bus, nearly crashing into the ground before she felt an arm grab onto her, helping her get back to her feet swiftly. Turning her head, she saw Kicks standing there, smiling in a surprisingly amused way, though she doubted he was making fun of her with it.

"Are you alright, Miss Katrina?"

She smiled sheepishly and pulled away from him, once she was ready to walk on her own again without crashing into the ground. "I'm fine, just a bit clumsy today, I guess." Nothing else new there. Shaking it off, she looked around, taking in the area they'd arrived at; both of them had decided that for their little day out together, they'd go to the park. Beautiful, it certainly was. What with the sun finally coming out more often, the ponds and grass simply lit up. "Ah, it's pretty here," she muttered, causing her headdress to jingle when she twitched her ears.

Kicks smiled at her and nodded, chuckling. "I-It is..." Once realizing his gaze was on her, not the scenery, Katrina blushed quickly, then coughed, moving forward.

"Let's go towards the pond then, hm? It's been a while since I've visited this place. What with working most of the time." The skunk followed after her swiftly, obviously walking behind her just in case she tripped or something – everyone in the city knew how she was by now. Just walking was a hazard.

Letting that embarrassment go, she bounded the rest of the way to the pond, dragging the skunk along with her now that she'd reached back to grab his hand. Despite her act during fortune telling, she really was quite something when it came to personalty. That's what Kicks thought, anyhow.

"You brought bread right?" She stopped once she reached the edge, watching a few ducks that floated around in the pond, quacking at one-another. Not all animals walked and talked, you know.

"O-Of course!" Kicks reached for his pack hastily, pulling out s brown bag and handing it towards her. Watching the cat sit down delicately on the grass, he took his place next to her, counting as she began to tear the pieces of bread inside the bag, throwing one piece at a time out towards the small birds.

"They're so cute!" she chimed, her smile brightening. In turn, Kicks' gaze softened, and despite his usually shy personality, he managed to find his voice for the moment.

"A-Ah, they certainly are!" He switched his gaze to the little birds, letting out a small laugh. "I use to do this all the time when I was y-young! It was a fun pass-time." He noticed the cat look at him with a mixture of happiness and surprise – probably because he rarely mentioned his childhood. Not that it was bad, she knew, he just seemed like a quiet kind of animal. Obviously.

"Aha! That's cute, Kicks. I can hardly imagine you as a child." He blushed at that remark, and in attempt to hide his embarrassment, he reached over and took a piece of bread from the bag, throwing his fair share of it out to the ducks.

"W-What were you like when you were young...?" He finally seemed to regain himself after a moment, looking back over at the female. She was quiet for a moment, before bursting out into a stream of giggles.

"My parents described me as crazy! I would bound all over the place – I mean, if there was an adventure to be had, I'd go at it! I guess that's why I got into fortune telling; nothing more adventurous than the future that someone holds, right?" The cat threw out another piece of bread, her whole expression bright.

Kicks' own smile widened. "Y-You certainly sound like a lively child, Miss Katrina. I can imagine it." He was probably referring to her ditzy personality, she realized, but because it was him of all people, she doubted that he meant it in a bad way. Of course, little did she know, he rather liked that about her. "If... you'll allow me to confess, actually," the skunk began again, pausing for a moment as if hesitating, "for quite a while now, I've–"

"Ooh, look here. What are you two up to?" No. No, no, no, no... Katrina was going to kill him. Fur bristling slightly, the cat let out a hiss, and Kicks seemed to get a saddened aurora to him, turning away from the cat and messing with a few grass strands on the ground.

Redd.

* * *

–  
5:34 P.M.  
Sunday  
Carniven City  
–

* * *

"Why would you do that!?" Katrina screeched, slamming the door as she pushed Redd into her shop before her. Kicks had gone home awkwardly after Redd had so kindly butt into their date – which she was now furious about having ended only about ten minutes after it'd began. She was debating over strangling the fox or cursing him with some weird fortune voodoo that everyone seemed to believe in.

"It was a coincidence," he stated, a sly smirk on his face. Did he really take this as a joke!? Growling under her breath, the cat walked towards him, having to keep herself from slamming her paw against his chest in anger.

"Coincidence!? You knew we were going on a date, you jerk! Do you not want me to have fun? Do you hate me that much? What did I ever do to you? For the love of – Redd, I can't believe –" She didn't know where she was going with this, being blinded by fury and all. She was also humiliated; seeing Kicks again was going to be harsh.

Redd's gaze seemed to dull a bit, and after a moment of silence passed between them, she sighed. "Forget it. I don't... I'll just talk to him about it tomorrow." Shaking her head, the cat turned on her heels, making her way towards the door. Placing her paw to her forehead, she placed the other on the knob. Turning it and opening the door just slightly, she froze.

"I'm jealous," he said suddenly, his voice blunt, serious. She didn't turn to look at him at all. Katrina just stood there, her arms dropping to her sides. She didn't hear that right, did she? Surely her ears were malfunctioning.

"I'm sorry... what?" Her voice was hoarse, questioning. Eyes glued in front of her, she couldn't even bring herself to look back at him. She felt like she was about to fall over. Listening to his footsteps come closer from behind, she felt his body heat as he leaned against her slightly, trying to get access to the door. Leaning up and pressing his paw against it, so that it shut once more, the fox placed a genuine smile on his features, and if anything, his cockiness faded in a moment of vulnerability that she swore, by one-hundred percent, she would never see on his expression ever, ever again.

"I'm jealous."

* * *

**First, the happy side-notes.**

**I have FINALLY figured out how I want this story to end. After sitting here thinking, it all came together, and I know everything I want to happen. Since there's only a few more chapters left (by a few I mean over ten, so don't worry, it's not going anywhere just yet. XD), you'll get to see how everything turns out soon. :p Yay! I hope you'll be happy. For now, just enjoy what I'm dishing out!**

**And if you don't enjoy it... boo on you, I try.**

**Also, Kicks fluff WILL start to pick up. I'm trying to work him into the story... slowly. For reasons you'll see in chapters to come. And just so you know, I'm a rapid fangirl of both pairings, so I assure you, there won't be a way to tell who she ends up with until the very end. HA. I SHALL TORTURE YOU ALL.**

**Second, evil side notes.**

**OH. MY. GOD. I have had this chapter written since two weeks after I last updated. BUT. NO. I had surgery about a week after my update, right? And I was in the hospital for what they said would be a couple of days. But nooooo, I ended up staying longer. My mom was kind enough to bring my laptop to the hospital, and I finished this chapter.**

**BUT.**

**They. Had. No. Internet. Service. You can't imagine my frustration...**

**But at least it's here now. And I'm alive. Yay for living!**

**Oh, and readers, this is your LAST chance to say who you want Katrina to end up. If you leave a review for this chapter, make sure to leave your opinions, because from this point on, if you say nothing, my opinion will be the only one that matters. ;P I kid.**

**But seriously.**

**Thank you, thank you for all your support!  
.**

**...Review! Please? It makes me feel warm and fuzzy inside! And... my writing skills lack confidence, so make me feel better. I worded that wrong. Oh well, too lazy to fix it.**


	10. The Fountain of Wishes

_I don't own Animal Crossing, or any of it's characters._

_

* * *

_

–  
Sunday  
9:10 P.M.  
Carniven City – Inside Katrina's fortune shop.  
–

* * *

"You're what?" Katrina repeated, still believing her ears were malfunctioning. Or something. She really could not have heard that right. Slowly reaching up and removing Redd's paw from the door, she turned to face the fox, wide cat-eyes blinking in disbelief, like she'd just seen Bruce the Shark. He kept a steady gaze on her, though he released an annoyed sigh at her reaction.

"How many times do you want me to say it, Katrina?" He mumbled quietly, surprisingly in a bit of an awkward tone. It was obvious that Redd, himself, wasn't quite used to admitting things like this... in fact, he seemed out of place in so many different ways at the moment. All he was met with was silence, though, as the ditzy fortune teller tried to process all of this into her mind.

She wasn't sure how to respond.

"You're..." Katrina ended the sentence before it even started, causing another bit of a pause between them. Eventually, she picked it up back, however. "You're... jealous... of... Kicks?"

"Yes."

He didn't have to be so straight-forward! Katrina got a surprised look, finally expressing some kind of emotion, at least. "W—What? Really? Why!" At this, Redd simply chuckled, raising his paw up and resting it on her head, careful not to hurt her pointed ears in doing so. He didn't answer. She really was oblivious, it would seem... shameful.

For a swift moment, the cocky fox's gaze softened, then he gently moved the cat of his way. "Goodnight, Katrina," he stated simply, his voice regaining the same slick, smooth tone it'd always had. Opening the door on his own this time, he stepped out and closed it behind him. "Heh heh..." He swished his tail behind him, then went on his way to go home.

Leaving a very confused cat behind, mind you.

* * *

–  
Monday  
6:00 A.M.  
Carniven City

–

* * *

"Hello? Earth to Katrina? Helloooo?" Labelle's voice penetrated the black cat's thoughts, immediately causing her to turn and look at the other.

"I'm sorry, what?" She tilted her head, blinking obliviously. The porcupine got an agitated look, clearly not happy with her friend's inability to pay attention at the moment. Usually she'd be happy to bug her about whatever was plaguing her mind, but after the party that took place over the weekend, she was still almost ready to fall flat on her face. How Gracie hadn't fired her for it yet, she would never know.

Labelle guessed she should be thankful said Giraffe barely ever comes in.

"Wake up! Geez, you've been stumbling around like a ghost all morning. I mean, I understand being tired and all..." She trailed off and rolled her eyes, going back to messing with a few of the clothes that were scattered about, putting them back up on display, in a perfect fashion. "Did you sleep well over the weekend? I mean, you actually slept, right? Some cats are nocturnal, so I've heard, but–"

Katrina tuned out again, leaning against the cashier desk as her friend babbled on. She watched the rain pouring down from outside... at least Kicks wasn't there today. She didn't want to face him... not yet, anyways. Not until she knew what the heck was going on. How her life had gotten so complicated in a matter of seconds, she'd never know. As if the symbol weren't enough to plague her mind.

Closing her eyes, she slid down to a sitting position, leaning her head against the back of the desk as well. Labelle didn't seem to notice, though.

"...And I'm going to the theater with Tom this upcoming Wednesday. Shrunk has a show playing that I'd like to see, even though it'll probably be as funny as a rock. He seemed interested, so I figured it'd be a good time to see if he's acting strangely. And to try and get my discount on clothing, of course." She paused and finally noticed Katrina wasn't listening. Twitching, she groaned. "Ugh... Katrina!"

Said cat jumped, quickly looking up at the porcupine. "S-S-Sorry! What now?"

Labelle just sighed. "Oh my..."

* * *

–  
Monday  
8:00 P.M.  
Carniven City  
–

* * *

Katrina locked the door to her store, sighing. It was barely dark out, and she was already closing... by now, some of the people that came often had to know she was acting strangely. She was preparing herself for an endless stream of questions of which she could not answer. She knew they'd come sooner or later. Turning her back to the door and leaning against it, she looked up at the partially darkened sky, raising her paw up and fixing her fur slightly. "I'm losing my mind," she muttered quietly, shaking her head.

She didn't know what was going on anymore. The sooner she could sort everything out in her head, the better.

She pushed further against the door when a drop of rain hit her nose, causing her to shiver slightly. She hated water... it was almost an instinct for her. Leave it to her to forget her umbrella the one day it actually begins to rain. She could tell Winter was coming, at least. That snow would be a welcome guest, though... to some extent.

Taking her gaze to the bus stop that was a few feet away, she frowned. Waiting in the rain would be absolutely horrible... but she wanted to get out of here as soon as possible. She almost wished she owned a hoodie now, instead of full belly dancer-styled clothing.

Pushing off from the door, she fully prepared herself for it as she stepped out, the rain falling onto her fur and immediately making her as damp as possible. The headdress managed support for her eyes, at least. Crossing her arms, she stood by the bus stop and looked down at the side-walk below her. Days like this seemed so depressing; she preferred when the sun shined.

She preferred Kicks being there so she could apologize for what happened... even if avoiding him was tempting.

"Hm?" She heard footsteps approach beside her and lifted her gaze. The rain shortly after stop falling onto her. It was a welcome thing, but the person responsible made her look away. "Oh, hello Redd," she mumbled awkwardly, not prepared for the fox to actually approach her. She supposed she shouldn't be surprised though, he was never the one to hold onto things for long... embarrassment being one of those things.

"Standing out in the rain like that could get you sick," he pointed out, a slightly snobby tone to his voice that made her want to punch him. But, at the same time, she didn't mind as much as she usually would. He kept the umbrella he held over both of them, then chuckled. "Going home so early?"

"I'm tired. I didn't sleep much after the party... cat instincts, I guess." At least Labelle gave her something to use as an excuse, but he obviously wasn't buying it. Still, he didn't pressure her for any kind of real explanation.

"That so?" Redd pondered for a moment, then looked down at her. "This is sudden, but would you like to come somewhere with me?"

Katrina looked up at him hesitantly, tilting her head. "I just told you I was tired. Where could you possibly want to take me that would defeat the temptation of sleeping?"

"If you came, you'd see!" He smiled at her, and she sighed, giving in. With a simple nod and flick of her tail, she motion for him to lead the way. This fed his ego to some amount, but he seemed more thrilled than snide about the ordeal. Grabbing ahold of her paw, he pulled her towards her in order to keep her under the umbrella with him as he led the way. Turning away from the bus stop, he changed paths to go to the right, skipping by all the shops and heading straight down the side-walk.

Katrina had never truly wandered anywhere beyond the city square, seeing as the place she rented was on the "dead" side of the county, but nevertheless, she stuck close, too tired to really protest with him at all. It was refreshing, however, even in the rain. With the building lights all turning on due to the sun's rays decreasing, it was starting to look like a true city, and a larger one at that. She'd almost forgotten that there was something beyond the square.

With Redd's paw tight around hers, he led her quietly, not speaking a word as he tried to calculate the directions in his head. It was only about two minutes of walking, though it was enough to get her to lean on him because her paws were killing her. Being that tired and walking anywhere was simply horrible in her mind. Still, he finally came to a stop at a small bench; they were off towards the right side of the city, which was lit up more-so than anywhere else, excluding the square itself.

Blinking at what he'd stopped in front of, Katrina tilted her head. It was a large fountain – larger than the one nearby all the shops in the square. It was lit up just as much as the buildings around them; even the water had lights of color to illuminate them.

"You wanted to show me this?" As beautiful as it was, she was confused. Looking over at the fox, she noticed that he snickered, but in a good-natured way, rather than the deceitful one he did around his costumers.

"Yes, I did. I always come here at night. Well, when I can find the time anyways. It seems so much calmer than in the square. At night time, everyone is buzzing around out there, even when everything is closed... Here, there's still others wandering around, but a lot less than there. Not to mention, the fountain here is so much more..." He trailed off and shrugged, looking at her. "You don't agree?"

"No, no, I do, I just never pegged you as the sentimental type."

"T—That's not what I said!" Redd was quick to protest, lighting up with something of a dignified pride. He was a cocky business man... apparently he didn't want to be known as anything but. Katrina didn't buy that, though. Well, at least, not anymore.

"Uh-huh," she muttered in reply, getting a questioning look. Shaking her head, she looked back at the fountain, smiling. "It is pretty, though. A lot more so than the one I see every night when I close..."

"Indeed." Redd beamed with triumph for a moment, as if he'd gotten her to admit something amazing. He calmed down, though, and reached into the pocket of his business sash, pulling out a single bell. Handing it to her, he smiled. "Make a wish, why don't you?"

It was surprising; she didn't think he ever parted with his money – not a single bell – for something so simple. And, yet, here it was. Hesitantly taking it from him, she closed her eyes and held it in her free hand, muttering something under her breath. It was inaudible to his ears, so quiet, it was. Once she was done, she flicked it into the fountain. She didn't get to hear it plop because of the rain, but she still watched it sink to the bottom.

"What'd you wish for?" Redd chimed, curiously.

"Can't tell you, or it won't come true! You know that!" Katrina nodded in a serious manner, then tilted her head. "Aren't you going to make a wish?"

The fox stared at her, then smiled. "I already did," he answered, a certain kind of knowing in his expression. Confused, the cat was about to question him, but he stopped her, tugging on her paw. "Let's go back to the bus stop. Hope I didn't make you miss it. I'd hate for you to have to walk all the way back... in this rain, you'd probably fall flat on your face!"

Redd laughed at her as soon as he ended that sentence, causing her to get an agitated look. Still, she didn't insult him back. Not this time. She honestly didn't think he was insulting her in the first place.

He led her back to the bus stop after that, just as quietly as when he'd taken her to the fountain. With nothing more than a goodnight, they boarded the bus, sitting down in separate seats. When Katrina's stop came, she briefly glanced at Redd as she got off. He looked back at her and held the end of the umbrella out for her to grab. "You need it more than I do," he commented.

"...Thanks," she whispered, attempting not to wake up any of the sleeping animals on the bus... including the some-what coherent driver. Taking the umbrella from him gently, she descended the stairs and opened it up, hovering it over her as she ran up the side-walk to make it to the small hotel in the middle of nowhere.

Redd watched her until she disappeared inside, in which he took his gaze down to his lap. "Katrina..." The forecast called for the sun to return tomorrow. Kicks was going to be back in the square, and she may not see it, but he could tell with his eyes closed that the shoe-shiner had a crush on her. Glancing outside once more, briefly, as the driver jolted himself awake, managing to once again legitimately drive the bus... kind of, Redd leaned back in his seat.

He was an animal of greed and trickery that cared for no one but himself. At least, that's what he'd always prided himself on. He always got what he wanted; whether it be objects of interest, or money in general. But now something else was plaguing his mind. But why her? Why her, of all the other animals that visited the square daily?

Redd sighed. He didn't know the answer to that, but he knew one thing for sure... He wasn't going to lose her.

Not to Kicks. Not to anybody.

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**Who else thinks I need to finish this story and stop being lazy? I know I do!**

**Sorry for the long wait, I really had no idea how to do this next chapter, so I hope this came out at least likable. I'd like to post two chapters when I update next to make it up to you. Especially now that my creativity is back. Thank goodness for role playing!**

**I'd like to thank my friends for role playing with me, actually. You all got my creative mind to work again... and I'm even more of a hopeless romantic. Darn Antoinette/Blade pairing! You're too perfect!**

**Anyways, I've now fully decided the fate of all characters in this story. Thank you all for your opinions, but you're going to have to wait until the final chapter, which is a good ways away, to find out what happens. Suffer xD!**

**And thank you to those who pointed out the "your" "you're" thing. I've always had trouble paying attention to that... Hopefully I did better this time.**

**Kicks comes back in the next chapter. With his own fluff scene this time! GASP?**

**...Yeah, please review. I'll give you a cookie.**


	11. Weary Traveler, Why Think Such Things?

_I don't own Animal Crossing or it's characters._

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It's not normal for something so old, that's always been there, to suddenly reawaken at the strangest of times. It's not right to suddenly feel like you love someone, out of the blue...

At least, it shouldn't be.

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–  
Saturday  
9:19 P.M.  
Carniven City  
–

* * *

It'd almost been a full week since she'd seen or heard from either Kicks or Redd – with the rain, that was understandable on the skunk's part. Stupid forecasts always lied, it obviously wasn't planning on being sunny any time soon. But the fox didn't have an excuse, and truth be told, Katrina was starting to feel a little worried, as it were. Had she said something wrong? Had the awkwardness of... whatever happened taken over their friendship? Not that she cared, but...

"Heeeeeeeeeeeey!" Labelle's voice rang loudly next to her ear, and shortly after a fist hit gently against the top of her head, causing her headdress to move out of place.

"Eek!" Katrina jumped to her side suddenly, widened cat eyes staring at her porcupine friend in surprise. Several pages from several books and art books were spread out around them; she figured they all belonged to Gracie herself, but she seemed to of completely forget what they were doing.

"Geez, Kat, you've been dazing off all week! It's so unlike you. Even the people who come to get fortunes notice something different. Is the symbol really bothering you all that much?" Labelle frowned, her gaze showing that of worry for her friend. The three that knew about this little problem had been studying the people the symbol showed up on from time to time, but so far, their answers for it were limited.

"Y-Yeah, that's what it is," she answered hoarsely, her long black tail swaying to the side in an agitated motion at her friend's obliviousness to her situation. Though, she wasn't one to talk... even she didn't really know what was wrong.

"Why don't you go back to your shop to rest for a while?" Labelle scratched her cheek absently. "I could probably finish up sorting the rest of Gracie's designs by myself. And if not, I'll just grab Lyle by the tail and force him to come over here. I would ask Shrunk if he's busy but..." She shuddered. That dude scared her.

"Um, right. Sorry." Katrina flashed a helpless smile, then made her way out of the clothing store, frown lining her lips. Somewhere along the line, the rain had dwindled to a slight drizzle, leaving her with at least enough cover to where she didn't need an umbrella. Working her way along the side of the stores so she stayed sheltered, she watched some of the animals wandering around, umbrella in hand as they stopped and chatted with one-another for a while, occasionally stopping to offer her a friendly wave before moving on with their social lives.

Coming to the stoop that Kicks usually worked on, she sat on one of the stairs, glad that the abandoned building jutted out just far enough to cover her from any incoming rain... she hated water, after all.

In the distance, the bus came and went, Kapp'n barely managing to keep awake as he repeated the same routine he'd done the day before, and the day before that, so on, so forth. It made her wonder why she stayed stationary here. At least back when she was traveling, there was variety in the places she spent time. Truth be told, she was considering going at it again, taking a leave for some city that was bigger, better, and that would eventually cause her to move on again anyways. Not that traveling was all that bad, really...

But, here, there was...

Her gaze trailed over to the path that led to Redd's shop, her gaze dulling to that of emotionless, thoughts of confusion clouding her mind for a moment. There was... "Huh?" She broke out of her trance and looked to the side, noticing a somewhat timid skunk standing beside her; he must've spoken, for he was looking at her expectantly, but he obviously understood she hadn't heard what he was saying. When had he even approached?

"Are you awright?" He repeated, watching as Katrina scooted over to offer him a seat on the stoop as well, which he did. His arm barely brushed against her, causing some of the water from his fur to transfer over, but she didn't mind. He obviously hadn't thought of bringing an umbrella today either, but she wondered why Kicks was here.

"Hmm, yes, I am. I'm just considering some business options. I still find it strange to be bolted down in one area, I guess." Katrina felt a small smile tug on her lips, which relieved her, bringing her out of confusion and back to her giddy self, for whatever reason that was. Kicks noticed this and smiled back at her.

"I can understand that, Miss Katrina. From wha' I've heard, you traveled a lot before settling down on a single building for business, yes?" When she nodded in confirmation, he leaned back on the steps. The motion was awkward, but nonetheless, he remained calm sitting next to her. Which she gave him props for... she always wondered if she maid him uncomfortable or something. She hoped not.

"I've been considering traveling again for a while now, but I can't bring myself to do it. Maybe I'm just lazy?" She giggled quietly under her breath, and Kicks responded with a bit of a chuckle, but it was quiet and barely noticeable.

"Well, it's always an option if it's what makes fortune telling fun for you." Kicks looked over at her and for a split second, she could swear that a bit of a sad disappointment crossed the look in his eyes, but it passed far too quickly. "But there's a lot of people here that would miss you," he added in quickly, and even she wasn't oblivious enough to know he didn't mean just everyone.

When he said that though, her immediate thoughts when to both him and Redd. _Both _of them. _Only_ them. But why? Why not Labelle and Lyles as well? Didn't they matter? Of course, but...

"You think so?" She responded, her gaze going forward to look at the fountain that all the animals were now gathering around, playing with the water as it rained so lightly. "Maybe you're right. It's not a sure thing though. Like I said, I've been considering it for a while." She bit her bottom lip carefully, then she looked over at him before he could talk again. Her eyes laced with curiosity, which immediately kept him quiet, obviously waiting for her to speak. "Kicks, why did you come here? I thought you stayed home when it rained."

Kicks was quiet for a moment, then smiled brightly. "There was someone I was wanting to see. I know the sun probably would have come out tomorrow, and maybe I could have come to say hello then, but I couldn't wait that long." He got up and offered her one of his paws, which she took gently as he helped her up as well. "I wanted to make sure she was doin' okay. One of her friends mentioned she'd been a little out-of-it lately..."

"Is this person special to you?" Katrina pressed carefully, blinking.

"Very much so." Kicks blushed immediately after saying that, and if it weren't for the little patches of white fur on him, she wouldn't have noticed at all. "G-Glad to see you're okay, Katrina..." He squeezed her paw for a moment, and both of them remained quiet. He didn't look up at her though, and moved the hat down over his eyes to make sure he stayed hidden. "S-Seeya..."

Hurriedly, the skunk released her paw and made his way into the nearest store, the Auction House, hoping to make it seem like that was where he needed to go anyways. Katrina found herself smiling slightly... she couldn't pinpoint why.

* * *

Labelle watched the two from inside the store, pampering one of the outfits laying before her on the table. A sneaky smirk was placed on her lips, indicating her obvious amusement; she wasn't as oblivious as her friend was, she knew what was going on.

"If you're going to pretend to pay attention to your work, at least put a brush in your hand," Gracie hissed from the other side of the room, having arrived to pick up her scrapbook. Labelle blushed instantly out of embarrassment and being caught and hurriedly did as she was told, only this time making sure to actually pay attention to what she was doing.

The giraffe rolled her eyes, snatching up what she came for, sighing. "Work harder, porcupine," she cooed in an effortless tone, making her way towards the door. Labelle looked up to make a funny face at her as she walked out, but froze as she caught a glimpse at a small patch that was sewn into her boss's dress. Moving to the door to watch as she walked away, she narrowed her eyes. No doubt about it; on the shoulder of the dress, a familiar symbol was stitched onto the sleeve.

"What...?" Labelle cocked her head to the side in a confused manner, then quickly turned to make her way to Katrina. Upon realizing her friend wasn't there, she sighed, figuring she'd gone back to work. "I'll tell them later tonight," she muttered, blinking in thought.

She wished she understood half of what was going on here. She wasn't a fortune teller, she was a cashier! But why would Gracie-

"Hey!" Labelle turned around to see one of the costumers tapping their foot angrily.

"Sorry," she apologized quickly and motioned for her to follow as she made her way to the cash register. Looking up briefly as she rang the young owlet up, she caught a glimpse of a fox walking into the store. This caught her attention, of course, and naturally, she hurried along with her duty before finishing up entirely and leaving the owl on her own. "Redd?"

He looked over at her and his ear twitched. He seemed to study her for a moment before getting an unusually serious expression – especially for someone like him. "I need your help, Labelle."

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**What if I told you that in all honesty, this story is, in fact, almost done? Somewhat. Kinda.**

**I promised you a double-update, and you shall have it. The next chapter will be posted later tonight. I swear. Hopefully.**

**I'm really trying to keep these characters as IC as possible, but since Animal Crossing doesn't give us much personality to work with, hopefully I'm at least making them likeable.**

**Thanks so much for all of you who review this story, you're the reasons that I continue to write it. And you'll be the reason I finish it one day as well!**

**By the way, sorry for the short chapter. I love me some cliff-hangers, though. Obviously, since I do them so much. xD Haha. Oh, and if anyone catches the Nanny reference, you get some cotton candy!**

**-LovelyxxMelody;**


	12. Always the Bus Stop

_I don't own Animal Crossing or it's character.  
**Make sure you read the chapter before this as well; I did a double-update!**_

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–  
Saturday  
10:20 P.M.  
Carniven City  
–

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Katrina had returned to her work for a little while longer that night, since the weather was dreary and everyone was looking for a bit of a pass-time as opposed to standing around the square like bored idiots all day. Regardless, though, her efforts were only half-hearted. Kicks had done a splendid job at making her feel less awkward about... things, but she was still confused. Just talking to him helped, though. Even if their conversations had no point at all, they always helped.

Now, she sat at the edge of the fountain, staring down at the water as the little lights down in it shined dully. She gripped an umbrella in one paw, keeping whatever rain drops were still falling from hitting her. Looking up slowly, she let out a thoughtful sigh. Kicks had made a pretty solid point; leaving the city would cause her friends to miss her, she was sure. Not that she was going anywhere anyways, but it put the idea to rest for that much longer.

She figured the only reason it'd really come to mind again all of a sudden was because of all this symbol business. Freaking out and running in the other direction certainly wasn't going to help her career, though. And she would personally strangle the next person that suggest her fall-back plan be a waitress at a cafe.

…Oh, the strange jobs and people that were around this city.

Shivering slightly, she got up, scratching her cheek lightly. Making her way towards Lyle's shop and closing the umbrella as she stepped inside, she was delighted to see that Labelle had already arrived – probably sometime while she had been staring down at the fountain lazily.

"How's everything going?" She asked sheepishly, a smile easily working it's way onto her features as she watched the old otter, who was tangled up in the phone cord, desperately try to break free. Meanwhile her friend just sat in the corner, literally, having to press her paw against her mouth to keep from laughing at the poor old fellow.

"I-I have news," she answered heartily, her voice cracking with amusement and a sense of giddiness. Lyle just let out a stream of sailor curses instead of actually answering – which Katrina was going to go ahead and guess was the influence of Kapp'n.

"That's more than I can speak for," the cat grumbled, taking a seat at one of the lobby chairs, her tail curling around to sit in her lap. What with her and Redd suddenly avoiding each-other, she hadn't gotten to spend much time with him, and what little time she did have with him was definitely not focused on what the symbol seemed to be showing signs of.

Finally, Labelle walked over and yanked the phone cord from Lyle's frail form, causing him to come crashing to the ground. Annoyed look coming over his face, he held back a sarcastic thank-you and rose to stand up, merely brushing off all the dirt that was on his clothing, as if the phone line had been a bag of seaweed or something, as opposed to closed-off electrical wiring.

"Ahem – none on 'Ole Lyle's end. Camofrog seems just as rude and antisocial as ever. No miraculous acts of kindness out of thin air or anything, although he did speak fondly of this one human girl in his town, which 'Ole Lyle really didn't care about at all, but listened to him anyways for your sake." He was obviously pouting, causing Katrina to smile.

"I appreciate you putting up with the torture of listening to another's feelings for my sake, Ly." He cringed slightly at the nickname, his ear twitching.

"Bang." She didn't know why she was expecting a different reply, but it made her laugh nonetheless.

"My tuuuuurn! Stop ignoring me!" Labelle whined slightly, then smiled, clasping her paws together. "Earlier, I caught Gracie walking out of the store-"

"Which is unusual?" Katrina rose her eyebrow in a questioning manner, but the porcupine waved off her unconvinced pessimism easily.

"-and the symbol was on her dress! Not just there as in glowing and all freaky-like, but it was actually in the design. I think it was like a patch or something of the like." At this, both of them leaned forward in interest, which set well with the young fashionista, as evidenced by the gleeful look on her features. "I didn't get a chance to stop her and ask her about it, but she's coming back to the city sometime this upcoming Tuesday, to pick up more of her design sketches. I'll try to get her to talk then. In the meantime, I think we should all keep spending time with the appointed person!"

Lyle looked over at her blankly. "Speaking of which, have you actually spent time with Nook? Bang."

Labelle laughed nervously, resting her hand behind her neck. "I-I was getting to that..."

"Uh-huh..."

"Good enough," Katrina cut in quickly before Labelle could make a childish remark. Getting up, she let out a small laugh, smiling. "So can I go home now? I'm so tired, I think I can feel my tail beginning to drag on the floor." Lyle nodded in reply, and Labelle simply shrugged.

"Go ahead! But, keep in mind, you're on Redd duty!" Something in her friend's eyes flashed, an almost mocking look, to be honest. That at least let the porcupine know that the cat hadn't been aware of Redd's earlier visit to GracieGrace, which made her feel a little better. With how oblivious her friend was, anyways, she was sure she shouldn't be surprised, though. Hard as it was to keep a secret, she stayed quiet after that one comment. Blinking obliviously, Katrina rolled her eyes and waved.

"Yeah, yeah, I know. Well, goodnight you two." She gave them a quick wave of her paw, giggling under her breath as she stepped out of the building. Letting out an exasperated sigh afterwards, she shook her head. "Oy."

Quickly making her way to the bus stop, intent on getting home before Lyle and Labelle decided to get out – or, even worse, Dr. Shrunk. His theater would be closing any minute now. Standing by the sign, she leaned against it, closing her eyes. Truth be told, it was starting to get so cold, she wondered if the rain was going to start turning into snow, soon. Fireworks would be coming up soon, too, which would mark the end of their little symbol fiasco, whether they'd have resolved it by then or not.

"Fancy meeting you here – again. Is it just me or do we ride the bus together more often than we pass by one-another in this stupid square?" Katrina looked behind her and saw the ever-smug fox smirking at her. She didn't know why she'd expected anyone different.

"I guess," she grumbled, crossing her arms. "Our shops close at the same time, you know. Or, at least, I think they do, since I've never actually... wait, when does your shop close?" She blinked a few times.

"Late." How descriptive. And helpful. She pondered saying something out loud that was simply dripping with sarcasm, but bit her tongue. He wasn't antagonizing her yet, so she'd let it slide. He leaned on the other side of the bus stop sign. "Hm..." He sounded thoughtful for a moment, then he just went quiet again.

Already she could hear the hectic sounds of the bus coming forward; judging by the sudden speed increase, then descrease, she was going to guess that Kapp'n was tired. Or busy trying to flirt with one of the unfortunate riders. Whichever.

"..." Katrina turned her head to look over her shoulder, only able to get a glance at his; unable to see his face. He must've known she was looking at him, though, because he turned his head as well, smirking when their gazes met. Letting out an annoyed scoff, she looked back in front of her, frowning.

She almost wished Kicks was there, there to distract her from him. There to keep her from getting any deeper into whatever mess it was she was getting herself wrapped up in. With both of them.

Both.

She felt his paw reached back and grab ahold of hers, but she made no effort to protest, too wrapped up in her thoughts to really say anything. It felt like hours that they were standing there like that, but eventually the bus came up and stopped in front of them – thankfully without running over anyone. Without a word, Redd was the first one to climb aboard and take a seat.

Katrina stood there for a moment longer, then waved Kapp'n to go ahead without her. Listening as the bus drove off without her on board, she turned her head in time to see Redd shoot her a teasing glance. Narrowing her eyes angrily at the notion, she noticed one thing in that split second; she wasn't the least bit annoyed at him.

Turning her gaze back towards the city square when the two bickering friends finally emerged from Lyle's house-modeling building, they made their way to come stand beside her.

"Did we miss the bus?" Labelle blinked quietly, tilting her head to the side.

"It hasn't come yet." Katrina smiled at them brightly. "I'm sure it'll be here soon, though. We'll wait together."

"Bah! Curse whoever gave Kapp'n a liscense! Bang." The three of them laughed.

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**I actually gave you a double-update? Yay! Anyways, I love Lyle. Just saying!**

**Thanks again for all reviews! Remember, those are what inspire me to write more chapters, so keep giving them! And you can all have your cookies now for reviewing last time! X3 -hands out cookies-**

**Must... finish... this... story... must... not... disappoint... readers.**

**-LovelyxxMelody**


	13. Oblivious

_I don't own Animal Crossing, or it's characters!_

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–  
Sunday  
9:00 A.M.  
Nooks  
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Labelle watched the busy raccoon with interest as he scurried around his now largely upgraded shop, helping all the animals that were currently running around trying to get his attention to buy things. There was always a big sell on merchandise when the festival got around; she could just imagine it was a good time for the money-grubbing guy. She was glad that today was her day off, but just watching him made her tired.

"Geez," she sighed exasperatedly as he walked back over to the cashier where she stood, drawing lazy circles on his desk. "Do you ever take a break? You're like a race car going around the track or something." He chuckled at her metaphor, looking up at her with gleaming, sparkly, excited eyes.

"Well, it's not often that I get to bag so much money in one day. It's a very good time for my business. And I'd actually like to be able to buy some presents for people this year. Small ones, but presents nonetheless... That is a tradition for the fireworks festival, right?"

"Well, kinda, I always just thought you gave food to a person. Maybe that's why I never get anything much from people." Labelle giggled lazily, then propped her head up with the palms of her hands, which were, in turn, propped up by her elbows. "Found a date yet? Not that it's required – I mean, except for Katrina, I'll be forcing her to take one – but surely someone must be chasing after your money?"

Tom Nook twitched his fluffy tail at that, rolling his eyes. "Probably. But I'm not easy to fool, oh no! I can see right through insincere people!" He nodded matter-of-factly, smirking with great confidence.

"That so? Huh. I can barely tell when someone is lying about my shoe-laces being untied." Labelle snickered, then let her forehead fall onto the desk. "So is that a no, then?" She felt like she was going to pass out.

"Not really. I have someone I'll ask sometime this week, just not too quickly. I don't want to seem too eager, asking so soon before the festival. I'd rather wait until the day before." He snickered, and in return, she groaned.

"By then everyone will be taken," she grumbled, then raised herself up to look at him once more. "A sincere girl, I take it?" She made finger quotes. "You can see through her liiiiies~!" She dragged that word out in a ghostly manner, causing him to laugh quietly to himself before returning to his costumers.

"She's not much of a liar," he responded, padding his way over to one of the nearby animals, whom happened to be examining a stack of paper that resembled holiday cards. Thus, he left the porcupine behind to pass out tiredly in one of the chairs in his store. What as she supposed to be looking for? Right the symbol... it could wait.

Tom passed over the paper to the animal having received his payment, then shot a glance over at the already sleeping porcupine. He blinked slowly and then turned away. "I wonder why she suddenly started hanging around," he muttered, his gaze softening. Without further delay, however, he rushed over to the next costumer, smiling brightly. "Oh? Yes, yes! This item is one of a kind, sold only by..."

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–  
Sunday  
9:30 A.M.  
Carniven City  
-

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Katrina stared up at the brilliantly bright sky, tracing the outlines of clouds with her paw. Tilting her head to the side in a thoughtful manner, her eyes narrowed. "Hm." She grumbled under her breath for a moment, then paused and gently hit the back of her head against the door to her shop, listening as it caused her headdress to jingle loudly. "My brain hurts so badly."

She couldn't stop thinking about it – it was bothering her so much now. Kicks and Redd... both of them. She didn't know why, but the thought of them made her squirm slightly, and she groaned, resting her paw against her forehead to block out the intense sunlight. She felt like someone painted their faces on bricks and then repeatedly hit her over the head with them.

It was terrible!

Sighing heavily, she slid down to a sitting position, glad that no one else was around, except the city visitors, of course. Redd had reappeared in his shop, Kicks was taking a day off, Labelle was taking a day off, Harriet was busy as ever helping people get their hairstyles ready for the big celebration, no matter how many days away it was, and Dr. Shrunk... well... he was Dr. Shrunk. As for Lyle...

She shot a glance over at the building he worked at, watching the old otter prance around in front of the story like a little girl; something had really excited him. She had no desire to find out what though... probably had something to do with money. Not that she hated money. She loved bells! But... just not at the moment.

Pursing her lips together and then making a fish face, she stared hazily out at the road in front of the city, moving her lips back in forth to imitate the scaly creatures, which no doubt made her look like an idiot. A few of the animals passing by stopped and giggled at her before moving on with their lives, but she paid no mind to it, twitching her ears with each movement she made with her lips.

"What are you doing?" A cold voice spoke next to her, and simply turned her head to see the red fox had – go figure – magically appeared beside her. Did he ever come up in a not sneaky manner? She knew he was of the feline family, but really?

"Amushing myshelf," she answered, her voice slightly disoriented by the shape of her lips. Regaining her normal expression though, she got an embarrassed look and smiled weakly, scratching her cheek. "Ha... ha... I wonder?"

Redd rolled his eyes, sighing. "Some things never change," she muttered, placing his hand over his forehead in a slightly overdramatic way. Katrina just stared at him blankly, then scoffed and shooed him off, shuffling back up to stand. Before he could open his mouth to say more, a tiny clearing of the throat sounded from behind him, and when they both looked, they noticed a slightly awkward skunk standing behind them.

Redd scowled, but Katrina smiled.

"Hi Kicks! Here on your second day off? Bummer!" She giggled, and the fox almost felt like he was going to throw up. How come he never saw that side of her? Why didn't she ever smile at him like that? Did she hate him that much?

"I-I hope I'm not interrupting," he murmured, shuffling his paws nervously. Redd threw his hands in the air sarcastically, but didn't utter a word, which got him a quick slap on the arm from the fortune teller, as well as a glare. Kicks, taking the hint to be quick, directed his gaze towards Katrina. "U-Um... are you going to the festival with anyone?"

"Why!" Redd hissed, and Katrina groaned, pushing him to the side gently.

"No, no one's asked me. Well, not directly anyways." She twitched and glanced at the mail slot connected to her door. A whole lot of awkward had been written down on paper lately.

Kicks smiled at this, trying to forget that Redd was glowering at him. "W-Would you want to go with me? I-I know it's a bit of a stretch to ask you..." Katrina blinked at him, then smiled brightly, but before she could answer, Redd let out a ferocious growl and turned around, stomping back towards his shop and slamming the door. The cat just stared at him, then sighed.

"Don't worry, I'll talk to him," she said obliviously, looking back to Kicks. "I'd love to go with you... Ehe!"

The skunk managed a small smile, his eyes practically sparkling. "I-I... I'll talk to you later about it then!" Before she could respond, he ran off to get on the bus – which had again arrived in one piece by some miracle. Judging by how he faltered getting up the steps, she was assuming it was out of embarrassment that he ran off. She smiled gently because of this, then tensed up when she remembered Redd.

Right.

Sighing, she made her way over to his shop once the bus took off, landing three clearly agitated knocks on his door. When it opened, she prepared to yell at him, but his hand shot out and grabbed her wrist, pulling her inside without a single warning. The door closed behind her, and she was stuck standing in the middle of his shop, random junk thrown around at her feet.

"Hey! What the heck is up with you!" Katrina turned around to face the fox, whom still had a somewhat cold, cool look on his face; as if he were playing off his attitude with ease. "Geez! If you don't like me, then fine, but why do you have to take it out on Kicks! He doesn't have anything to do wi-"

"You're so oblivious," he muttered quietly, and that was all he said. Katrina closed her mouth at those words, an angered look coming to her features. She shook her head, already deciding that the trip over to his shop was completely worthless. Making her way towards the door, he stopped her by brushing his paw against hers. She looked down at the floor with confused, still angry eyes. Raising his hand, he rested it under her chin and forced her to look up at him, but did nothing more. "I've never met a person so strange. You say you can predict the future; see into people's minds, and into their hearts. But for one so smart and so knowledgable of these things, you're..."

He trailed off, thoughtfully, before leaning forward and placing his lips against her forehead. It was brief, but enough to leave her almost paralyzed. "Have fun at the fireworks festival." He opened the door and gently pushed her out, somehow painting a jokester smile on his face as he did so, snickering. But she could see through his guise. Maybe she'd been able to all along.

Simply staring at the now closed door, she felt it again. That pang of happiness, and that pang of guilt, all rolled into one. Reaching up and touching her forehead, Katrina stumbled her way over to watch Lyle as he excitedly blabbed off to an animal that could probably care less what he was saying.

Oblivious...?

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**Fireworks are getting closer and closer! Which will mark the end of the story. Hallelujah on my part! Teehee.**

**By the way, this story will have... I would say a sequel, but not really. It's more of a spin-off, I guess? Either way, this will not be my last AC:CF fanfiction. But, before I start the next one, I'ma finish this one, because I don't want anyone to kill me for more late updates. Which means no details released until the last chapter of _Her Crystal Ball_!**

**-LovelyxxMelody.**


	14. Fortune Tickets

_I don't own Animal Crossing, or it's characters!_

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* * *

_

–  
Monday  
3:23 P.M.  
Carniven City  
–

* * *

"Kee-ha-ha-mo-ta-ta..." Katrina thumbed her paws around the crystal ball, watching the clouds circle around inside. "Kee-ha-ha-mo-ta-ta..." In her head, she secretly wondered who the heck thought up these chants for fortune telling. Sure, it got the job done, but really? "KEEEEEEEeeeeee!" She shrieked loudly, trying not to laugh as the costumer in front of her jumped; it was obviously their first time in her shop, she was guessing. "Yes, yes, I see..."

She tried to keep her voice steady, despite her confused emotional turmoil. What was she? Twelve?

"You have wonderful fortunes coming your way!" Katrina shuffled through a small bag in her drawer before handing it over to the bird in front of her. "This is a free charm, curtesy of the upcoming festival. Bring it back with you that day to get another fortune reading for free!" She smiled happily, watching the animal jump in joy before running out of her shop, presumably to brag that she'd just given him a reading.

Yeah, right, let's go with that.

"I thought you were closing shop until the festival?" Katrina looked up to see Labelle come through her door next, a coffee mug in her paw that let the fortune teller know she was on break.

"I need to make money somehow. I have to exchange gifts with everyone, anyways. And as far as I see it, if I keep avoiding this stupid thing," she paused and pointed at her crystal ball for emphasis, "people will just get suspicious and start gossiping lord knows what kind of rumors."

"Like you don't have rumors going around about you already, you mean?" Labelle beamed and Katrina gave her a 'what the heck are you talking about' look. "Gah! You're so clueless, don't you listen to the other animals talking in town?"

"No."

"Such a killjoy." Labelle sighed dramatically, putting her paw against her forehead for extra effect. "Anyways, I'm not going to tell you, 'cause I'm afraid you'd claw me, and I like my face where it is. Besides, I've got somewhere to run off to!" She paused and looked at her watch. "Gracie gave me a two hour break today. Something to do with overworking her employees and the threat of being sued if she didn't give them a little time off..."

Katrina's ear twitched at this information, a positively bored, yet amused, expression on her features. "Gracie sounds like a charming lady, she should come get her fortune done sometime," she hissed sarcastically, then blinked a few times. "Oh, hey, what do you mean you have somewhere to go?"

"Unlike you, I'm upholding my end of the deal." Labelle got a joking smile, thrusting her paw into the air enthusiastically. "I've been spending a lot of time at Nooks! Not only have I learned how to properly work a cash register without spraining my wrist, but I've also noticed a small pattern with the symbol you keep seeing."

"I'm sorry, I know that was important, but you're actually spending time with Tom Nook? The cheapest raccoon ever known to walk the planet? And you haven't gone insa-... well, more crazy than you already are?"

Labelle held back a snide remark. "Well, he's not so bad. Besides, he's catering to the costumers half the time, so all I do is pass out at the corner of his store and he wakes me up before I need to get back to GracieGrace." She shrugged, taking a drink out of her semi-warm coffee. "I'm so tired lately, I feel like a walking corpse."

"I know the feeling." Katrina glowered at the wall for a minute, then placed a bubbly smile on her lips. "Okay, well, you have fun with that; save the information about the symbol for sometime when we meet up with Lyle. It's best we put all our thoughts into it anyways. And I barely even mind anymore; I got used to opening my eyes when in bed and staring at the pretty light on my ceiling. Nothing creepy about it or anything."

"Glad to hear the both of you are getting along! It can be like your best nightlight friend for the rest of your life." Labelle chimed slightly as she walked out the door, leaving Katrina to groan and slam her forehead against her desk lightly.

_Knock, knock._

"Ah! You may enter." Katrina quickly snapped back into character, hovering her hands over the crystal ball in front of her. A wolf walked in and stood there, mumbling something about a love reading. She was getting so sick of these...

* * *

–

"What exactly do you keep calling me over here for?" Camofrog grunted in an annoyed tone, watching the old otter shuffle papers on his desk quickly. "It's great that I won and all, but now I'm just getting annoyed with this... my house wasn't even decorated by me; Navigale helped put it together."

"Well it's your house so it doesn't count for her, now does it? Bang!" Lyle snapped impatiently, leaning over the desk to grab something and nearly falling flat on his face while doing so. "I'm getting to old for this..."

"Then quit?"

"You're always such a pleasure, Camofrog." Lyle walked over to him and handed him a couple of papers, pointing to different blank lines. "Sign here, here, here, and here... Initial here, here, here, and there... and also here. And use your full name! Oh, and-"

"I've filled these out before!" Camofrog snatched the papers and pen from him grumbling under his breath as he signed the lines as fast as animally possible, wanting just as badly as Lyle to get the heck out of there.

The bell on the door rang slightly as it opened, a small human female skipping inside energetically. Blue hair tied up into a bun and blue-framed glasses to match, there was no mistaking the girl for Navigale; it'd been a while since Lyle had seen her drop by town. Noticing her neighborhood friend, she strode over to him, trying desperately to peek over his shoulder and see what he was signing.

"What's that?" Her annoying voice was like a thorn poking in his side, causing the camo-patterned frog to twitch.

"Paper."

"I know what it is, but what _is _it!" He nudged her away gently, and Lyle sighed. He figured it was going to take a while to get the papers he needed, so he went over and sat down, examining the two as they went ahead with a somewhat childish argument. However, the more they spoke, the more he became aware of it; Camofrog's discomfort for one thing, he obviously wasn't a peoples-person, but also a small glow on the ground below them. They didn't seem to notice, however, Lyle did.

That symbol.

"You two!" They both went quiet at Lyle's voice, and immediately, the older otter got the picture. "I see. So that's what it is..." While the duo continued to stare at him like he was crazy, he just kept chuckling under his breath, leaning back in the cheap-not-so-comfortable-chair provided for the lobby of the building. "Bang."

* * *

–

Kicks stood by the fountain in the city square, eyes fixated on the water that rippled every time a new drop hit it's surface. The sun was up and shining, but as he should be working, he was more withdrawn into his thoughts. He could see a flash of red through the corner of his eyes, leading him to believe Redd was at work trying to hussle costumers into his shop.

Redd.

Why did the thought of him make Kicks feel slightly uncomfortable? Not that it was a secret to anybody that the fox was interested in Katrina – but up until now, he'd always figured that the creature was too oblivious or just plain not serious enough to take his feelings anywhere. Perhaps he'd stepped in at the wrong time? Had he gotten the courage to go after Katrina the very moment Redd did the same?

Shifting his gaze to watch the fox, his eyes narrowed slightly, but not in an impolite way. Redd wasn't anymore genuine than he'd ever been, he was still hot-headed and had the temper of an angry wasp, and to be honest, it didn't seem like anything had changed about him at all. Yet, there was definitely something different. Not that he ever really hung out with him or interacted at all.

It was just a fact that anyone who'd ever entered his shop – yes, he was of the unlucky few who did – would understand.

His gaze then skipped over to the fortune telling shop that was set up; already a line had formed outside the door, not doubt wanting to get as many fortunes in as possible before the festival; it cost a lot less to go ahead and do them now and get the coupons than pay for them later and have to add on the holiday tax.

"Kicks?" Said skunk turned his head to see a porcupine standing there, timidly. She looked a lot like Labelle; so much so that rumors had always spread around about them being sisters. He could see another, more blue-toned, porcupine off to the side arguing with Dr. Shrunk about something no one in their right mind would ever ask about.

"Sorry, did you want a shoe-shine today, Sable?" Kicks looked at her and smiled, and she squirmed slightly, not used to social activity in the least.

"Actually I wanted to ask a favor of you. I have a late payment to hand over to Redd, but I'm too scared to approach him..." She paused and got a guilty look, pointing at him as he continued to sweet-talk, and all-together just mess with the heads of, anyone who passed by. "Y-You see why?"

Kicks twitched, holding back a laugh. "P-Point taken. I'll take cares of 'et for ya." She quickly handed him a bag of bells and nodded.

"Thanks... maybe I can get my sister to get out of the city now." She paused and looked over at the arguing porcupine, whom was now following after Dr. Shrunk, into the theater. "Or watch the show they put on for the audience." Without another word, she scampered off to get her sister, awkwardly moving by the crowd.

Kicks sighed heavily and made his own way over to Redd. At first the fox tensed up when seeing him, but when his gaze hit the bells, it was like anything that'd ever possibly happened just flew right out the window. "Ah! A potential costumer?"

"N-Not really. Sable, from the Able Sisters, wanted me to give you these. She mentioned it being a late payment...?" Redd froze when he mentioned that, and the faintest hint of a ghost smile came to his features.

"Did she mention what payment it was for? I don't recall how many items I've sold them for their shop..."

"No, I'm afraid not." Kicks blinked a few times, and Redd took the bells, laughing quietly.

"Well! Nevertheless, how very kind of you to bring them over here. I'd give you something for your troubles, but that would defeat the purpose!" Kicks laughed nervously, muttering something under his breath and turning to walk away. "And," he paused and looked back at the fox when Redd spoke, tilting his head, "have you gotten a reading from Katrina yet? It's good luck to get free ones for the festival, so be sure to do that."

The skunk merely nodded and took the words to mind, adding himself to the long line of animals outside her shop.

* * *

–  
Monday  
9:30 P.M.  
Katrina's Fortune Telling Base  
–

* * *

Katrina felt like she was going to kill over. Handing out another ticket, she brought her paws up to her face and stretched her cheeks, trying to wake herself up. "So many... in one day... going to die..." She needed sleep after this. It was time for her to take every ounce of Labelle's words to mind and just picture the stupid thing as a nightlight, because she was going crazy. And no more late-night bus rides either, that wasn't helping.

Kapp'n and his mad-man driving made it hard to fall asleep for anyone. Oh, the nightmares.

_Knock knock._

"You may enter," she called out, putting on her best mystical voice she could manage with the tiredness washing over her. From what she understood, she only had one costumer left. Thank goodness. Watching the door open, she almost fell out of her seat when she saw Kicks walk in; she hadn't expected to see him so soon after the day before, given he ran off so quickly.

"Katrina." He greeted her warmly, making his way up to the desk and leaning on it slightly, examining her crystal ball before looking up at her, his gaze just as gentle and sweet as ever. The exact opposite from Redd. "Could I get a love reading, and a charm?"

"S-Sure," she stumbled slightly, blinking surprise. "Um... place your paw gently on the edges of the crystal." He did as instructed, and without so much as a word outside of fortune telling, she began her job. "Ke-ha-ha-mo-ta-ta... Ke-ha-ha-mo-ta-ta..." She could see it in the fog, deep inside the crystal. She didn't freak out this time – she was used to the symbol, and after all, she could just make something up since she didn't know exactly what it meant. But it hadn't showed up for Kicks before now... that left another animal on their list. She was just getting more confused.

"Well?" Kicks broke her out of her chance and she looked up to see him tilt his head curiously, beaming at her. Katrina blinked a few times, then suddenly smiled at him. Reaching her paw down and grabbing a ticket, she took hold of his own paw and placed it there for him to take, not letting go of his wrist for but a moment.

"I don't think I'll tell you the future of your heart just yet, Kicks... forgive me for that." He stared at her, speechless, before a thick blush clouded the skin underneath his fur.

"I-I-I..." He took the ticket and nervously reached up to fix his hat, smiling knowingly. "Th-thanks, Miss Katrina..." Kicks vaguely shot her another glance, before scurrying out of the soon-to-be-closed shop, leaving a thoughtful cat behind him.

* * *

–

"So, closing up shop?" Labelle rubbed her eyes tiredly, watching the raccoon that scurried around, fixing everything for the next morning to come. She'd gotten over the fact she'd slept through her shift rather quickly, and to be honest, Gracie probably wasn't going to be pleased. At least since no one else wanted to work for her, she had no fear of being fired.

"Yup yup! Sorry I didn't wake you up before it was time. You went out like a light, Labelle..."

"Hm, it's not a big problem. I'll just hand Gracie a new type of fabric tomorrow and all will be well." She shrugged, snickering quietly. Leaning against his counter as she stared at the somewhat old cash register on it, she tilted her head. "Hey, Tom, how long have you owned this place anyways?"

"A few years. It's actually a lot newer than you might think it is." He paused and looked over at her, before making his way to stand in front of the desk. He leaned on it, watching her curiously as she fiddled with the business equipment he had lying around. "You asked me, no it's my turn – aren't you planning on asking someone to the festival?"

Labelle looked at him and shook her head, sighing. "Eh, not really. Most the people in the city are already going with someone, or want to go with someone, and those are really the only people who know me personally. Most of the guests I have just get frustrated with me caused I take so long to ring them up." She giggled, getting a mischievous look, before shaking it off. "Why do you ask?"

He got a confident look and straight up, tapping the tip of his nose with his paw. "Just asking. It's good to know." She smiled, then went back to messing with the cash register again. She looked like she was trying to find the off button, given the area she was looking, but when she pressed down on one of them, the money holder shot out instead, causing her to squeak. "Labelle?"

"Yeah?"

"You pressed the wrong button." He smiled jokingly at her, and she groaned, doing everything in her power not to give him the satisfaction of hearing a sarcastic remark.

* * *

**Must. Finish. Story. This thing needs to be updated regularly, and it needs to be finished before I start back at school! Yes, I finally healed from my surgery, by the way. I think, anyways!**

**This isn't my favorite chapter in the whole story, but I'm not displeased with it, I guess. I realized two things: I need to incorporate Katrina's fortune telling more into her character – thank you reviewer that reminded me! You know who you are. :B And, also, I need more Kicks fluff.**

**But. Yay! Update!**

**I go pass out now.**

**-LovelyxxMelody**


	15. Understanding

_I don't own Animal Crossing, or it's characters._

_

* * *

_

–  
Tuesday  
10:00 A.M.  
–

* * *

–

"Gracie is going to kill me when she finds out I left the new girl in charge..." Labelle shook her head, sighing under her breath. She'd been doing her part of the job respectfully, and the group was finally meeting that night to discuss their observations, with the fireworks festival so close by. She still didn't know what the big deal was, or why Nook was involved, but she'd gotten a kick out of sleeping so often. Pulling a chair up, she rested the side of her head against his counter, blinking slowly.

"Tired again?" She barely glanced to her side to see the finely-dressed raccoon standing there, no doubt exhibiting every ounce of success his shop had from head to toe. She just smiled at him in reponse, and he took it as a yes. "You have to start sleeping more often... I don't think this is very healthy."

"Ppfft, health is my middle name, dude." Labelle waved her paw in dismissal, yawning. "It's just that I've been helping Katrina out with a lot of things. Nothing too special... once the festival is over with, I'll be good to sleep for as long as I want. Heck, maybe I'll have enough time to get another part-time job. Possibly here since I seem to spend every waking moment of my life sleeping in your store, now." He chuckled quietly and pat her head, being careful not to hurt himself on her quills.

"You are not like other girls, Labelle."

"You're telling me." She reached out and wrapped her arms around the cash-register jokingly when she saw a customer coming up, nuzzling against it gently. "Mine..."

Tom rolled his eyes, trying to pry her off of it. "You're going to drive me nuts, on the other hand..."

* * *

–

Katrina shifted through her bag with ease, trying to mentally check off a list of things she'd need to pack. Clothes, her fortune telling supplies, something to keep herself entertained... She couldn't really wrap her mind around it, actually. It'd been so long since she'd traveled as a fortune teller. She was kind of excited about her decision, but knew it was sudden.

Made the night before, as a matter of fact. Granted, she would be staying in the city long enough to finish this little adventure she started, but nothing beyond that. She hadn't told anyone yet, but she was willing to bet Labelle was going to be furious. Harriet would throw a fit, and Lyle... well... Lyle was... Lyle.

Redd and Kicks...

"Hmm?" She set the bag down and walked over to her hotel door, glancing out the peep-hole to see a semi-familiar porcupine there. Blinking slowly, she opened the door and got a surprised look. "Oh! Mable... it's not often I get a visit from you. Is there something I can help you with?" The female smiled brightly and nodded.

"Yes, yes! Actually, I want to ask you something about my sister. Think I could have a moment of your time?" She padded inside once Katrina motioned for her to come in. Locking the door behind them, she made her way to her bed and sat on the edge of it, continuing to fiddle around with some of the contents. "What is it?"

"Well, you see... it's about the fireworks festival, Katrina. We could really use your help with something."

* * *

–

Redd sighed and finished carrying in the last of his new merchandise, swiping his paws together once he was finished. Crossing his arms, he examined it all for a moment to make sure it looked perfect, then nodded. Hearing a small knock on his door, he strolled over and opened it, blinking as he watched the mail pigeon flying off so quickly. Looking down, he bent and picked up a small letter; which was embroidered with gold. It was rather majestic, which was his first clue that it wasn't meant for him.

Ever the nosy fox, he didn't care much. Opening it, he read over the words a few times, then slowly backed up so that he was leaning on the door, a small smirk coming back to his features. "So the kitty cat is going back to prowling for customers, is she? Should've known she wouldn't settle down for long."

He still remembered the times he had competition on the move; Katrina, Gracie, Sahara, and even random animals that showed up out of nowhere... He'd been the first one to get a shop – aside from Gracie, whom owned enough shops to build a mall out of all of them. As much as he enjoyed traveling around, he'd always found it a hassle. Still, he wondered why the fortune teller seemed to change her mind so quickly. Thumbing the paper in his hand, his gaze dulled slightly.

"..." He thought about Labelle for a moment; when he'd gone to her for help not too long ago. He wasn't an expert in these situations. Never way, and to be honest, he would still never care enough to ever be. He was self-centered, Katrina was correct about that much. But at the same time, he was confused about how exactly true that was now-a-days.

"_You may try to ignore it or play it off as nothing, and heck, you may even try to deny your feelings, but the fact of the matter is, if one person constantly dominates your thoughts... you've already fallen in love with them."_

What a peculiar thing it was for her to say. Especially since she was one of the biggest air-heads in the world... well, aside from the fortune teller, herself. Carefully resealing the letter, he went out and made his way over to Katrina's shop. He guessed she was running late since the door wasn't unlocked, so he slipped it under her door, sighing.

She always told him he was a jerk, or just plain annoying. She'd never once complimented him as far as his personality went, and yet they'd always had some sort of twisted, love-hate friendship. It was venom at first sight; not the kind of best friends story that a person would normally tell to a child. From the start, she'd hated him because of his skeevy nature, and he'd mocked her because of her oblivious, clumsy one.

Now it was like she'd learned to put up with him, and he'd learned that her oblivious, clumsy personality was exactly what made her so interesting in the first place.

"Sorry, Kicks..." Redd smirked and and turned to make his way back to his own shop, realizing a few animals were now staring at him, wondering what kind of note it was that was slipped under her door; unaware it was merely a piece of mail.

He'd been okay with it for the first five minutes, but now... he couldn't let Kicks take her to the festival. No one... no one else but him.

* * *

–  
Tuesday  
12:00 A.M.  
Katrina's Fortunes  
–

* * *

–

"I take it we've gotten some progress?" Katrina watched both of them for a moment, then fell back on her chair, staring up at the ceiling with a dazed look. It was so late, she felt like she was going to keel over any moment. It's what she tended to feel like when she took pain pills to go to the doctors or something. Ugh... needles... No, no, off topic.

"I've just about figured this out. Bang. All of us chose who to examine because they suited our personalities or arrangements, yes? Yes! Bang. So, I believe that each symbol we see, has a match, so to speak. When Camofrog was with Navigale the other day, the symbol showed up almost immediately!"

"Then how come regular animals can't see them?" Labelle pushed the pillow from her face, wanting to get fresh air.

"Simple; because they're just oblivious. If you were enjoying a really important, remarkable moment of your life, or even just talking to someone important to you, would you notice something like that? Bang! No, of course not! That's what people go to fortune tellers for, right? Basically what Katrina sees are completely obvious things that people miss on their own. Bang!"

"But what do they meeeean!" Labelle whined, throwing her pillow at Lyle, which he did not appreciate.

"If I had to compare them to something you two understand, it'd be a save point in a video game." He cleared his throat quietly, trying to ignore their questioning glances... they were surprised he even knew what those were. "You know how the symbol flashes when something very important happens?"

"Oh... so that's what you meant..." Katrina nodded slowly, resting her paw under her chin. After a moment, her eyes widened. "I think I get it now..."

* * *

**Yes, this was a very short plot device/filler chapter. Yes, this marks the moment that there are only 4-5 chapters left to write. Yes, the symbol part was horribly written because I'm really tired and rushed this to get it up before my internet died again; I'll make up for it by clearing things up in the next chapter. And making the next chapter longer... easier to read and whatnot. And, yes, it is four in the morning. So, yeah, I'm not proud of this chapter. At all. Not even a little bit. o.e Rawrs.**

**Thank you to everyone who has reviewed/followed this story up until now, though. If it weren't for all of you, I would have gotten sick of typing this a looooong time ago.**

**:3**

**-LovelyxxMelody**

**P.S. I'm changing my pen-name soon, just a heads up. So don't be surprised when my signatures no longer match the past chapters... until I think of something, any of you want to give me some ideas? I'm open to anything that sounds epic. xD**


	16. This Isn't Going as Planned

_I don't own Animal Crossing, or it's characters._

_God, I wish._

_

* * *

_

–  
Wednesday  
Evening  
Carniven City  
–

* * *

–

Katrina stared at Labelle for a moment, trying to decide whether she'd literally passed out, or if she'd just gotten to the square earlier than the others. But, for whatever reason, there was a porcupine lying on her floor, sleeping. "..." She remained quiet for a moment, trying to decide if she should wake her up and explain that Gracie was having a fit in the town square looking for her, or just sneak around her and ignore the whole situation. Sure, they'd been up late last night explaining things, but this was really...

"Labell-" She cut off as she walked forward, her paw hitting a paper on the ground. Blinking, she bent down and picked it up, opening the envelope to read the contents. After a moment, she nodded slowly, letting out a long sigh. "I see..."

"See what?" The semi-conscious porcupine, still apparently oblivious to where she was or what was going on, opened her eyes drowsily and blinked at her fortune-telling friend. "What is a cat doing in my bedroom?"

Katrina stared at her with a dead-panned look, then smiled mystically, putting on her work voice. "For you, the future holds a very angry boss, and a possibility of being fired from work... Yes, you have a very dark day ahead of you, young creature. Please give me fifty bells for this information."

Labelle stared at her for a moment, then practically sprang to stand up. "Oh holy- I'm so dead!" She whined and stumbled by Katrina, trying not to get tangled up in any of the curtains along the way. The black cat brought her paw up and covered her mouth, letting out a few stray laughs at the sight.

"Oh my..." Honestly, if it were Lyle instead of her, the old otter would have probably chased after her with a chair in his hand. He may be aging, and rather lazy most of the time, but he couldn't stand lazy 'children'... he kind of reminded her of her grandpa.

Sighing at that thought, she made a mental note to never ever tell him that lest she want to be yelled at for three hours straight. Examining the spot where Labelle had been passed out, she walked over and hesitantly kicked the pillow out of the way, as if it were infected or something. She didn't want to know if the porcupine had been drooling or not. Really. Staring down at the paper that'd apparently been slipped through her door, judging by the landing position, she read the words and nodded slowly. Ah, her traveling license had been reinstated...

With that, she padded over to her desk and sat down, messing with a few things – this was one of the last days she'd be open, so she might as well enjoy it. Still, she had yet to tell her friend of the 'news' she held, and she really wasn't aware of why it was she was going back to traveling in the first place. Sure, she got a lot of business, but it wasn't the same. That, and there was much less drama. On the other hand, part of her would miss finding stray clerks asleep in her building. Then again.

She twitched.

* * *

–

Labelle scrambled into the store, avoiding her raging boss in the square by all means possible, and groaned, running over to hit her head on the cash register lightly. "I've done it this time, she's going to kill me if I'm late again..."

"Then why not try getting to work on time?" A calm voice spoke above her, and she hesitantly raised her head up from the register, expecting the amused, yet disapproving look from Tom Nook. She briefly wondered why he was standing in front of her, but given the fact of last nights discussion, she was willing to believe that cats fly. Finding him there wasn't going to bewilder her any more than that would. "And learn how to use a cash register properly for that matter, silly porcupine!"

He snickered good-naturedly, and she blushed, doing everything in her power not to ram her forehead through a wall. True, she had a good habit of embarrassing herself, it was like a talent, but very little people every poked fun at her, aside from maybe Redd and occasionally Katrina. Which she was so used to by now, it didn't even matter.

"Can I help you with something?" She huffed and held her hand out to take the clothes he had in his hands; two tiny tuxedos, and a larger one probably for himself. "Uh... wedding or something coming up?"

"Actually my two little nephews are coming to work in the shop," he answered, a bit spacey. "I thought it'd be good to keep our looks as fancy as the store's." She almost laughed. Almost.

Before she could give a retort, she noticed someone standing off to the side, glowering at the wall in an angry attempt to... stare down the wallpaper, she guessed? "Redd. Please don't do that... you're going to frighten the customers."

Nook followed her gaze and almost fell over in an attempt not to laugh, but held his breath and kept a refined look, hiding it behind a small smile. "Hello, Redd. Having a nice day, I see."

The fox twitched his tail, then took his gaze to Labelle, though he was quick to reform it into that of a distant look, somewhat thoughtful even. "Have you spoken to Katrina lately about her business plans?" He tilted his head to the side, a frown tugging on his lips. Realizing this was rare – the frown, not the annoyance – Labelle blinked and shook her head. Nook just stared at him, lost. "You should. She's planning on going back to traveling."

"...Huh!" Labelle almost knocked over the cash register jumping over the counter, Nook scurrying to get out of her way before she pummeled him in the process. "If you are kidding me, fox boy, I will knock you out with this-" She paused and grabbed the nearest item. "-coat hanger!"

Redd stared at her for a moment, clearly with a 'is she serious' look on his face, then threw his arms up in mock defense. "Me? Kid?" He put an innocent tone on, and she took a step towards him. Despite himself, he chuckled. "No, I'm not kidding."

All the fight drained from her features and she nodded slowly, putting the hanger back down with a pile of unassorted ones. Dragging herself back behind the counter, she cleared her throat and finished ringing up Nook, stuffing his tuxedos carefully in a bag, taking his bells, then handed them to him. "I see," was all she said, obviously trying to calm herself down. Being the best friend to the fortune teller, Redd was going to imagine that she was panicking.

Nook looked between them, then scratched his cheek awkwardly. "E-Err... later, Redd." He paused and looked at the porcupine. "Labelle."

She looked up at him and blinked, then smiled loosely and shooed him with her paw. He scurried off accordingly, leaving the slightly amused, slightly confused fox, and the blank porcupine behind him.

"So... you know this how?" She shot him a curious glance, having regained herself.

"I read a piece of mail that was delivered to her. She reinstated her traveler's license and got permission to set up shops in several areas."

"B-But, that doesn't mean she's leaving! Look around me, Redd, I'm surrounded by boring people! I can't pass out in Lyle's store when I get sleepy, he'd yell at me for hours!" She whined and head-tabled, wincing at the contact and realizing that wasn't a very smart idea.

"Then talk to her and get her to stay! Why do you think I came here?" Redd twitched and walked over, forcing her head up.

Labelle stared at him for a moment, then sighed, pushing him back a few steps so that a new customer could make their way to the desk. Ringing up the items for her quickly, she shoved the back towards the animal and listened to her walk away. "Hm... well... I could try. We still have time, anyways. I mean, she won't leave before the fireworks festival."

"How do you know that?"

"I just do..." Labelle looked to the side, and Redd stared at her blankly.

"Because she's going with Kicks?" His sudden question jolted her, though she didn't seem too surprised in general. She smiled.

"I figured you'd be worried about that! ...Aren't you going to tell her Redd?" He didn't answer, and turned to make his way towards the door. "Why not?" She rose her voice a little louder, but in response, he walked outside and closed the door behind him, huffing.

"Because I thought it was obvious," he grumbled under his breath, making his way back to his shop.

* * *

–

Katrina thumbed through her fortune book between customers, desperately trying to find anything about "save symbols", as Lyle had so craftily deemed them. She still didn't understand the concept fully, but he was right to compare them to video games. From what she gathered; they showed up during really influential moments in a person's life, though she didn't understand why they were related to fortune telling just yet.

Or why it was stalking her, for that matter. Her life wasn't exactly a big ball of important choices or special moments. Not that she could recall, anyways.

Stopping on one of the pages, her eyes narrowed at the familiarity at some of the wording, wondering if she'd really skipped that much in her fortune learning. Granted, the crystal ball was real, so all she had to do was look into it, but she really should have studied more, she guessed.

Turning her gaze to the door when he heard a knock, she cleared her throat. "You may enter," she said aloud, watching as the door knob turned. In stepped a familiar raccoon, causing her to get a curious look. "Tom Nook?" She blinked, bewildered, seeing as he didn't exactly visit often. She figured he just wanted another wealth reading though; rich people were so obsessed with that sort of thing.

Not that she could say anything, given her earnings. Then again, she also blew all her money on the stupidest of things...

He padded up to her and rested the bag – full of tuxedos, she noted – on the ground, crossing his arms against his chest. "Um, this is awkward, but... are you really going back to traveling?"

She almost fell out of her chair, her paws jerking away from her crystal ball like it was on fire. "E-Excuse me?"

He cleared his throat, smiling weakly. "Redd came into GracieGrace and told Labelle about it. I just so happened to be listening in is all." He motioned to the bag.

"...Excuse me?" She repeated, her eyes widening. "And how did Redd find out about this?"

"I heard him say he read a piece of your mail right before I walked out." Ah, that explained the paper on the ground. Feeling her throat knot up in anger, the oblivious cat swallowed it and smiled pleasantly.

"Oh... well, yes. I just don't like staying in one place is all, but I'll still be doing business here, too. The property owner said I'd be more than welcome to set up a tent here when I'm passing through." Despite her friendly tone, she was thinking of ways to mangle a fox in her head. Who was he to do digging through her mail? Who was he to read it? She was half thinking of hitting Redd over the head with her crystal ball, but was afraid it would shatter.

Nook pondered for a moment, then nodded. "I see... well, I'm not here to dissuade you, I just wanted to see if Redd was up to anything. Good luck to you on your travels, Katrina!" Ever the kind raccoon, he smiled. "Be sure to stop by my town sometime, too, I'm sure Navigale would just love that!"

That human got around when making friends, Katrina noted.

The male scampered off, leaving the cat alone for a moment as she tried to gather herself.

* * *

–  
Wednesday  
10:20 p.m.  
Redd's  
–

* * *

–

Redd barely had time to react before his door was thrown open, an angry black cat striding in to yell furiously at him. At first, he couldn't understand what she was saying, because she started out with a bunch of nonsensical words that not even Labelle could put together, but soon, her speech came back to her.

"And what is it you were planning to do with my mail anyways? And did you have to tell Labelle! I was planning to let her know after the fireworks festival, 'cause now I'm going to have to listen to her go on and on and on and on and on-"

"Katrina-"

"-and on! So when my ears start to fall off or I suffer from hear loss, it'll be all your fault. While I'm on this subject, what is with you and privacy!"

"Katrina!-"

"I know you run a store here too and all, but come on! That doesn't give you the right to stare at all the letters a person from a different-"

"Katrina!" Redd raised his voice, managing to get the rambling cat to shut up. She blinked a few times as she slowly came back to reality, more-or-less realizing there were costumers around, and that he hadn't closed his shop yet. So she was basically making an idiot out of herself. Wonderful. She stared at him, he stared at her. The cat tensed up slightly, then squeaked and ran out of the shop, waving her hands in the air and screaming something along the lines of 'I'm sorry' as she made a run for the water fountain.

Surprised, the fox went after her, grumbling something about her being an idiot. Honestly, why she couldn't just act normal or realize things sooner was beyond him. Huffing as he caught up with the silently-sulking cat that sat on the edge of the fountain, he plopped down beside her, shaking his head. "You really need to learn some self control," he muttered, smirking.

"Ugh!" Katrina got an annoyed look, and made as if to scold him, but thought better of it and rested her paw under her chin. "Look who's talking!"

"What're you so mad about? It's not like any of us are going to come busting down your door if we find out." He twitched, rubbing his fingers against his forehead like he had a headache or something, the jerk.

"It still wasn't your news to tell! Geez, you are so childish!"

"Look who's talking," he countered, a smirk on his features as he mimicked her.

"Well, you know what? You heard what I had to say. You and... all of your costumers, but my point still remains. Stay out of my way, I'll stay out of yours." She crossed her arms and got up, pouting.

"Are you really going to go to the fireworks festival with Kicks?" Seeing as that question came out of nowhere, Katrina froze and looked down at him. Glancing over at the steps where the skunk stood, still packing up his usual arsenal of cleaning supplies, she sighed.

"Well, I said yes to him, so naturally I am, but-"

"Don't!" Redd stood up quickly, a bit panicked, but almost immediately seemed to calm down. "I-I mean, err... I just think you two make a funny couple." He sneered, angrily.

Katrina stared at him. "That's a little out there of you to say. But, I mean, I was going to say that he-"

"I don't care, never mind. But I think you should know-" Redd glowered at the ground, confusing the cat further.

"Redd, if you would let me finish-"

"I love you!" He finally hissed, venomously, and a bit stubbornly. Katrina was about to say something, then seemed to realize what he just said. He didn't notice immediately either, but when he did, it became obvious that hadn't been meant to come out of his mouth. She took a step back from him, her lips fighting to form words, but failing miserably. The fox just looked as if he was desperate for her to say something, but at the same time, wanted to go back to selling items.

Really, if Redd was playing another trick, she was gonna...

"..." Kicks, whom had picked that moment to walk by, watched the two of them, his expression becoming crestfallen. Noticing him, Katrina shook her head quickly, gasping.

"K-Kicks!" The skunk looked over at her, then quickly made his way into the deeper parts of the city. Her mind suddenly shot the situation off, and Katrina jolted forward to go after the skunk, waving her hand frantically in the air to try and get him to stop. "H-Hey, wait!"

Redd watched her go, then sat back down on the fountain, exhaling a large breath he felt he'd been holding for years now. "What did I just do?" He muttered, quietly. A few of the stray animals still left in the city shot him glances, already coming up with new gossip of the famous city clerks.

Labelle being amongst them locked the door to GracieGrace and walked over to him, poking him on the shoulder. "Come with me."

* * *

**Guess who got their internet back? -head/desk- Took me a while to write this anyways, so whatever. Hope you enjoyed this chapter, now for a few notes:**

**First, 80 reviews? Wow, thanks so much! I never thought it would even get to 50, much less over that! You guys are awesome.~**

**Second, who would you guys like to see featured as main characters in the sequel/spin-off to this story? I need to start getting my ideas together since this one is coming to it's end soon. And your opinions matter!**

**Third, thanks to a friend of mine in roleplay for the new pen-name. I adore it! Let's see my new signature. :D**

**-Matron of Madness.**

**P.S. Did you know they have an Animal Crossing animated movie? Ahaha... good times... I just found out about it. Pure love.**


	17. So, This is Awkward

_I don't own Animal Crossing, or it's characters._

"I think more than one soulmate exists for every person, and the one you live your life with, is just the one you met first. Yeah, well. I have a problem. I met all mine at once."

* * *

–  
Thursday  
Morning Hours (Before Open Shops)  
Carniven City  
–

* * *

–

Labelle traced her paw over the tape holding a boring brown box shut, exhaling a large sigh. "Leave it to me to forget the scissors on the day our new shipment comes in." She shook her head, calmly reminding herself not to do that with costumers around – Gracie forbid she stick one of them with her quills by accident. Going to plan B, she padded over to a nearby cat, whom's colors ranged from purple-and-white, then slowly drug him over once she explained the situation. "Think you can get it?"

"Definitely!" His eyes lit up, a voice sounding out that definitely belonged to a male. Extending one of his claws, he carefully positioned it, and began tugging away at the tape. Watching him as if almost hypnotized, Labelle barely noticed the small tap on her shoulder. Looking down to see the frail form of Lyle, she smiled.

"Hi there, 'ole friend o' mine!" She got a dramatic look. "Can I help you with something?"

"Lyle is 'ole. But he ain't blind. What the heck happened between you, Redd, Kicks, and Katrina the other night? The poor cat has been sulking all morning! And Kicks is missing. Strange, considering the day is bright 'n sunny. As for Redd. Well... he's Redd."

Labelle stared at him, then snickered. "Shouldn't there be a bang in there somewhere?"

He glowered at her and reached up to lightly thump her on the ear, earning a small chuckle from the cat picking at the sticky tape. "Bang."

She rolled her eyes and got a thoughtful look, then shook her head. "Actually, it's nothing much to worry about. I mean, it'll work itself out. Me? I was just giving Redd some advice, though. Nothing you would be interested in."

"It's not like I'm too 'ole to realize what's going on!" he snapped, huffing indignantly. Labelle found it cute. He reminded her of what a weird, over-reactive grandpa would be like if that's what hers actually acted like.

"Then, please, fill me in, because even I'm confused. And yet I keep trying to put myself in the middle of it... I'm just too nice." The porcupine feigned innocence and went back over to the cat, gently helping him get a few pieces of tape off his paws that'd torn straight from it.

"Or nosy. Bang," Lyle grumbled, twitching. She rolled her eyes at his words, then stood up straight.

"You're one to talk! Fine, here's what happened, at least on my end. You probably saw the small... amusing confrontation outside near the fountain." She snickered.

* * *

–

"_What do you want?" Redd glowered at Labelle suspiciously as she dragged him into GracieGrace, very graciously – he noted the sarcasm of his thoughts – kicking a box to the side that held who-knows-what for the new clothing line from Gracie._

"_First, I need to get this out of my system, then I have a point, I promise." As if to emphasis her point, she held up her paw, signaling him to stay in one spot, then doubled-over laughing, practically stomping her heels on the floor to keep herself from falling._

"_Labelle!" Redd twitched, clearly annoyed, but despite himself, didn't move, as he was told. He wasn't the type to get embarrassed, ever, but he suddenly did feel the strange urge to strangle her. It went on like that for a few minutes, her laughing to her heart's content, and him contemplating the consequences of banging his head continuously against the wall. Luckily, it didn't get far into detail, since she finally stopped, wiping a humor-induced tear from her eye._

"_Okay, okay..." She motioned her paws in front of her face like someone trying to cool off on a hot day, took a few deep breathes, let out one last snicker, then got a serious look. He almost couldn't believe how quickly the girl changed emotions. "You're not very good at stuff like that, are you? I mean, just blurting it out? Like that? In the middle of town?"_

"_I-" Redd faltered for a moment, and he hated that. Finding his dignity immediately, however, he smirked. "It was funny enough seeing her reaction. It may be awkward for a bit, but it will keel over. Besides, she needed some excitement. Now she can run after Kicks and make it a true love story, yes?" He chuckled, but Labelle clearly wasn't amused._

"_So you've been acting weird, saying these things, and going off about it just for the sake of amusing her? Or yourself?" She stared at him as if he were crazy, and immediately, his annoyed look returned._

"_What do you want?" he repeated._

"_To help you. Because you may recognize the seriousness of your situation just yet, but I do. Ironic, isn't it? To think everyone said I was an air-head! How silly." Labelle crossed her arms, head cocking to the side curiously. "So tell me what you're planning to do to get her back." It wasn't a question – it was a demand. And he knew it._

* * *

–

Katrina circled the fountain, watching the lazy streams of water as they flowed from the stop sprout, back to the bottom, and all over again. From the corner of her eyes, she saw Dr. Shrunk salute her, to which she managed a smile and watched as he went into the theatre. Harriet was chatting with a familiar penguin she'd seen around town with Navigale before, but didn't remember his name. And, of course, Lyle, Labelle, and a cat she recognized as Rover were all standing around inside GracieGrace, picking at a box and chatting lively.

Yet Kicks was missing, and so was Redd. She passed off last night as a horrible mistake, figuring it was just her imagination, or that she was dreaming and it wasn't real, but somehow that thought bothered her even more than the truth.

After attempting to catch the shoe-shiner the night before, she'd given up and retired to her soon-to-be-ex-home for much needed rest, but the unease hadn't slipped from the pit of her stomach. She still felt on edge, like something was going to slip up any moment and cause her world to crash down further. But it was odd, really. Despite all those thoughts, it didn't feel like her world was really crashing. It felt like...

"Katrina!" The cat jumped when she heard her name called and immediately turned around to be met with a bright, smiling face, and sky-blue hair thrown into a messy bun.

"Navigal-"

"Navi," the girl cut in, reminding her of the perfectly given nickname. It'd been a while since the human girl had directly approached her, but she was almost glad; it was someone more new. Someone that was still oblivious to everything going on. "I was wondering if you're still going to be here for the fireworks festival on Saturday? I mean... I know about you going back to traveling."

Katrina paused for a moment, then smiled and fully turned to face her. Clasping her paws together behind her back, she eyed Navi's hands, which had intertwined fingers just in front of her chest. They looked so different from humans, she realized. Humans seemed so... bare and fragile. Yet this girl could probably outrun or beat anyone at sports. Though that was just an observation of her energetic personality, really. Who knew? In reality, she could be lazy as ever.

"I'm still going to be here, though I don't know if I'll stay at the festival long." She looked off to the side, nervously.

"You mean because of Kicks?" Katrina winced, and Navi took note of this. Her red lips tugged down in a frown. "You should talk to him. He's at the bakery shop in the other city square, just a couple minutes from here. I think he feels bad about what happened."

"You talked to him, didn't you?" The blue-haired human grinned sheepishly and cautiously dug the toe of her black shoes into the ground below her, as if she could get by the cement and feel the earth. Taking that as her answer, she dipped her head, her ear twitching. "Thanks... I might do just that."

"Good! You two look cute together!" Navigale giggled at the cat's startled face, then got a more out-going look, tilting her head. "Make sure you stop by _my _town on your travels! I'm sure Tom Nook would just _love _having some competition in the money-making field." She hummed innocently and skipped off before Katrina could really answer, heading towards Dr. Shrunk's theatre.

Shaking her head at the sight, the fortune teller smiled softly and turned to head towards the deeper part of the city.

* * *

–

Redd stole a glance at a few of the furnitures he was planning to move into his shop the next morning, slowly running his paw over a soon-to-be-over-priced couch. The more he thought about the approaching weekend, the more confident _and _worried he got. He never took anything seriously, aside from his money. But now...

"I wonder how much this will go for." He switched his gaze to a painting, one that could be real, or could be fake. Either way, it'd make him a lot. Grabbing it, he carefully set it on an easel, already planning his speech that he would win some unlucky sucker over with.

The fireworks festival would truly be his last chance, wouldn't it? After that, it was back to life on the road for Katrina, and he'd be stuck in the city, lest anyone suspect anything if he followed. If there were a way for him to follow, and lie about his reasons, he would do it.

_'The seriousness of your situation?'_ What had she meant by that?

Fur standing on end, he narrowed his eyes, shaking his head violently as if to rid the thought from his mind. Quietly, he wandered over to his bed and sat down, working his paw through his fur with a casual movement. "Focus, Redd, you have merchandise to price! You want their money don't you?" He felt a selfish smirk tug on his lips, and he looked over to the next piece – a beautifully made wardrobe – only to have a sinking feeling hit his stomach.

Slowly, his face lost it's usual cocky expression, and he leaned back against the wall, shaking his head. _It was just for my amusement. I was just confused. _Yeah. He kept telling himself that, but as he looked over to the side, to the small card on his desk that excitedly had 'You are invited to Carniven City's third annual fireworks festival!' on the front, he found himself knowing one thing for sure – he couldn't go blank like he did when Labelle asked him what he was going to do. He couldn't laugh it off.

He had to get her.

* * *

–

Kicks thumbed at a blue-and-green cupcake, carefully trying not to get any frosting on his paws as he peeled the paper off from the cake. Swirling his plate around to aid him with that, he looked at the miniature sweets cafe, studied a few of the animals around. It was super early, but the one thing he always fancied was sweets for breakfast. Apparently he wasn't the only one, either.

"Heh..." He smiled at the sight and shook his head, pulling his hat forward over his eyes in order to hide his embarrassment. He didn't do good in crowds, even small ones. He blinked his gaze back up when he felt a small tap on his shoulder, however, and when he looked up to see a black cat, clad in that of gypsy clothing, staring down at him, he frooze. "...Miss-"

"Stop calling me that," she muttered quietly, then looked down at the ground. He didn't say anything more for a while, then motioned for her to take the chair across from him. She nodded in response, muttered what he assumed was a word of gratitude, and took the seat. She kept her gaze to the side for a moment, and he began to play with his cupcake, cautiously poking it with a fork every now and again.

When she finally got the nerve to spoke, her voice sounded uncharacteristically quiet; he was so used to hearing her chant loudly from the other side of a majestic door, to hearing her laugh loudly at jokes, or to make them with confidence herself.

"I'm sorry... about... the other night. But it's really not what you think. I mean, he just blurted that out all of a sudden, and I swear, I was just... Um... I'm sorry." Katrina twiddled her thumbs nervously, giving him the impression she wasn't used to these things. Then again, he figured the need for her to apologize was rare. But he didn't know why she felt the need to now, of all times. Sure, it was awkward, but...

"Miss-... I mean, K-Katrina. It's fine, really... I was just surprised is all. I th-think a lot of the passerbys were." Kicks reached up and lifted his hat down, once more trying to hide a pang of embarrassment at his current position. It wasn't even that what they were talking about made it awkward, really. It was just... talking to her in general that made him...

"But you ran, and I know it must've been... I understand if you don't want to go to the fireworks festival with me anymore. You could always ask Sable." Katrina turned her gaze to the side, chewing on her bottom lip. Kicks opened his mouth to speak, but registered what she said, a look of shock on his features.

"S-Sable?"

Katrina fidgeted, her own eyes widening. "You mean you haven't –? It's obvious she likes you!" If he'd really taken the time to examine that sentence, he would have seen the irony. The most oblivious cat in the world, telling him what was obvious. He stared at her, dumb-struck.

"Does she?" Kicks took a moment to regain himself, then quickly looked down, blinking rapidly. Katrina took that as confirmation he'd gotten the point and went back to awkwardly examining a few nearby animals. "I still want to go with you," he mumbled after a while, smiling softly. "But... I'd like it better if you talked to Redd before then. Otherwise, I-I'd feel bad..."

"Right." She'd been dreading that, but he was right. She couldn't just leave it like that forever... she'd talk to him. Provided he decided to show up before the fireworks festival, that is. Quickly getting up, she looked down at him and shifted her weight. "Excuse me, I have to go open shop!" She frantically turned around and left, leaving Kicks to stare at her, confused, as she did so.

After a minute or two, he sighed and began picking at his cupcake again. "Awright, Katrina," he mumbled, aware that a few of the animals had finally noticed his presence. He closed his eyes, a small twitch hitting his ear. "..."

* * *

–  
Thursday  
Closing Hours  
Katrina's Shop  
–

* * *

"Ke-ha-ha-mo-ta-ta..." Katrina stared down at her crystal ball with a look of deep concentration, fully aware no costumers was left. Sure, it was impossible for a fortune teller to read her own future, but each time she tried, she kept hoping maybe she could break the barrier between her truth, and the next. So far, no luck. Slumping over onto the desk, she closed her eyes, heaving a sigh. "I really need a rest from magical fortunes. Seeing into the future really makes me tired."

She snickered to herself. Most viewed fortune telling as a fraud, but she knew better. She was the one that saw things others could not... it didn't require anything but openness to the idea, but it seemed so many people were unable to achieve the goal. Even the ones that came to her probably didn't truly believe her; it was just for fun.

Tapping her nails against the wood of her desk, she yawned and pushed up from her seat, grabbing her bag and shoving in a few items, including a few of the table sheets she needed to clean. A small click from her door, alerting her someone was entering. Much to her shock, the familiar skunk from earlier hesitated on coming in, not sure whether to bother her or not. When they caught one-another's gaze, he seemed to regain himself, though, and closed the door behind him.

"K-Katrina..." He bowed his head, a silent apology for barging in, and she noticed he seemed more tense and nervous than usual. She briefly wondered if something was wrong. Maybe he'd thought over it and changed his mind about going with her. Maybe he'd approached Sable that day, with Labelle's help. Maybe –

He stepped forward and stopped in front of her desk, gently picking up the crystal ball that laid there. She watched him tatter with it, knowing it was more-than-likely in safe paws, then went to stand by his side. "It's pretty, right?" She smiled brightly, then blinked. "What brings you here?"

"We kind of ended on an awkward note. I was hoping to fix that." He looked down at the ball more intensely, desperately keeping anything in front of him that would keep his gaze off her. She stared at him for a while, then shook her head.

"Ahh, I see! Don't worry too much about it. We both agree it was all a misunderstanding, so I think we can call the air pretty clear. No more tension, please?" She laughed nervously, then froze when he turned to face her. She was afraid she'd upset him for a moment, but then the sweet Kicks everyone had known from day one came back, and a carefree, shy smile stuck to his lips.

"No more tension," he agreed, then motioned for her to hold out her paws. When she did as he asked, he held out the crystal ball and gently wrapped it into her grasp, lingering his paws over hers for a moment before stepping back. "It's your crystal ball. It'll only ever be _yours_. That's why it's special, right?"

_Of course not_, was what she wanted to say. There were so many other reasons – it allowed her to see into the future, it was just plain beautiful, it was basically a treasure. But when she realized what he meant, she found herself only nodding in reply.

The tension really did lift at that moment, though. The misunderstanding from that night never truly went full scale; it never became anything dramatic, it never really even became something important. Talking to Redd would be – getting everything out in the open with him would be extremely important. But the would-have-been avoidance between her and Kicks wasn't.

As Kicks blushed face, so red she could even see the shade of crimson underneath his black fur, leaned down to capture her lips with his own, she only had one thought in her head.

_This was her crystal ball._

All the emotions, fortunes, and memories that came with it were hers as well. And as she shared that sweet moment with an extremely sweet shoe-shiner, she realized she didn't care if a certain symbol glowed behind him. If it was merely saving a checkpoint in her life... it picked the best moments to do so.

* * *

**100 reviews. I could hug all of you. ;w; Really, thank you so much for taking an interest in this story. It's been so much fun to write, I hope you're having as much fun reading it.**

**With only two chapters left, I leave you here to wonder about things until the next one comes out. Will Katrina and Kicks end up together? Or will Redd steal her away? Am I planning anything special for the two big finales? Will I make any other characters suddenly more important at the end for sequel purposes? We shall see!**

**On another note, I have fully planned out this ending, yet I give you all _one _last chance to state your opinions on here. Not just for the ending couple, but also for the main characters of the next story, as well as anything you'd like to see happen.**

–**Matron of Madness.**

**P.S. You know, during class today, we had a tornado warning and spent a full hour on tornado lockdown. Since I have a medical issue preventing me from going into the safe position, I got to sit in the teacher's lounge. Which luckily had no windows. At all. I was the only comfortable one in the entire school, save the teachers. Why am I telling you this?**

**Because while sitting there for an hour, I came up with this chapter. Thought you'd like to know what got me to write. It's something new every time! xD**


	18. Tick This Step! Oh, Wait, it's Mandatory

_I don't own Animal Crossing, or it's characters!_

* * *

–  
Friday  
Opening Hours  
City Square  
–

* * *

Labelle watched her friend stumble off the bus incoherently, trying to decide if the cat was just being clumsy as per usual, or if she'd managed to stay awake through the entire twenty-four hours that plagued the daily cycle. Going down the steps to meet her, she smiled brightly. "A bit late aren't you? You're usually here so early, you'd think you would have passed out or something while working!"

Katrina looked up at her and twitched her ear, then sighed heavily. "No, no, just tired today. I stayed up almost all night packing a few things I wouldn't need here for the festival. I'm leaving the morning after it ends. I'll be stopping by Nook's first to pick up a few supplies on the road, but I've got to pay a visit to the main city hall here before I can officially begin traveling. One last step, as usual."

Her porcupine friend blinked, one step away from pouting, as she had been every time they were alone and she brought up traveling, but she let it go. It was useless to sway her at this point. She shifted her weight, then looked around. "Oh, I see... it's weird, though, Kicks is late too. He's usually here way before any of us arrive."

At the sound of said skunk's name, Katrina counted her blessings yet again that her fur was dark. Even thinking about him made her mind go to the night before, and almost immediately made her stomach knot up. It had, in all definition, been the 'perfect' moment. She really hadn't stopped thinking about it, as he'd quietly helped her finish packing a few things, but for some reason, it didn't make her flutter with joy like most people said it should.

It made her feel kind of... anxious.

Labelle, not realizing what she'd said, stood there staring at her. "Um... hello? Katrina?"

Said cat snapped out of it and batted her paw in the air. "He's probably just taking a break. Not like you're one to say anything." That earned a sheepish cough from the other, and considering her point taken validly, she sighed. "What are you even doing here, anyways? It's not like you to wait for me." She heard Kapp'n close the bus doors, before it recklessly drove off down the road.

"Nothing really, I just got bored of watching the shop..."

"You can't get bored of your job!" Katrina snapped, twitching. Shaking her head and walking by the female, she left the porcupine back to her business of trying to distract herself before stepping into her mostly empty store. She didn't plan on opening, not for today, though she'd still be doing things at the festival. Scooping the crystal ball off it's desk and staring at it, she tilted her head.

She briefly recalled the kind words of Kicks and smiled, though it quickly faded. There had been a moment. Since the very first time he'd approached her, there had always been little 'moments' that they shared, ones that made her heart flutter or made her truly happy. It was the same way with him, and after he kissed her, she knew it wasn't just self-flattery when she thought that.

She still had to talk to Redd. That kept ruining the sweet thoughts for her, she was sure. For Kicks to be accessible, she had to completely close this ridiculous 'thing' with the fox, not even knowing what it truly was. Drawing a sharp breath, she leaned forward and pressed her paws on the single piece of furniture left in the room.

"Soap operas make it look so easy," she muttered.

* * *

–

Labelle silently traced her paw around different patterns on the fountain, scrunched down like a little kid attempting to examine how large the crack between the ending of them were, and the beginning of the concrete. Tom had been watching her for a while now, a few 'last-minute' supplies in his grasp from his final day of his shopping extravaganza, and he seemed fully aware she knew he was there.

It'd gotten that way only a little bit after Katrina went into her shop, and the porcupine seemed a bit frustrated.

"You're not very good at math, are you? They're probably only an inch or two apart..." Tom tilted his head, shifting the weight of auctioned off items to his left. She turned and looked up at him, then stood, shrugging.

"It passes the time."

"So does working." Tom didn't understand how this girl got paid, to be honest.

"Okay, despite popular belief this morning, I'm actually off right now. Gracie is suddenly getting ready to renovate the shop a little bit out of nowhere, so she told me I could have the next two weeks off, until it's finished. I'm just here because I have to overlook the first few people that come in and make sure they don't steal anything before the garments get put away."

"Which I can see you're doing very well." He smiled smugly, a look that almost made her want to kick him, but she pouted instead. Sighing, he looked over at the building; now that he noticed it, there had been a bunch of uniformed animals exiting and entering all morning. He hadn't paid much attention when stopping by the auctions. "At least you get a break."

"Not really... now I won't be getting much pay, and I need them for my bills this month." Labelle shrugged awkwardly, then snickered. "I guess I could ask one of my sisters... that'd probably be hilarious, in the end. Mable can be a real stickler with bells!"

Tom examined her for a moment longer, than got a face that represented that of an idea. "No need! Why don't you come work with me at my shop while it's under renovations? I'll be happy to give you pay for helping me out. I usually have a business boom right after the fireworks festival anyways, so I'll need the extra help. My nephews can only do so much."

She stared at him like he was crazy, then when she realized he wasn't joking, she blinked. "S-Seriously? You'd willingly hire me for a little bit?"

"Well, I do have one condition." Labelle's face dropped, but he shook his head. "Don't worry, nothing drastic. But if you accompany me to the festival tomorrow, I'll let you start immediately."

"Huh? Why me?" She tilted her head. He didn't answer, and instead looked off to the side. Catching that there would be no reply, she sighed. "Okay, okay, I'll go with you! But you better let me start work, you greedy raccoon!" Despite what people thought, work was definitely important, especially for her financial purposes. That was one reason why she'd convinced Gracie to keep her around. Tom would do for the time being, she supposed.

He smiled and turned to walk off. "Good, good, I look forward to seeing you here tomorrow night."

* * *

–  
Friday  
Closing Hours  
Redd's Shop  
–

* * *

Redd continued messing with his merchandise when he heard a knock on the door. Looking up, he didn't put on his usual welcoming face; he knew the only person that would come after hours. "Come in," he called out, not surprised at all when a black cat walked in to the dimly store.

He took in her expression, and realized she seemed a little nervous. Recalling his revelation the night before, he stood up straight, remaining quiet. "Redd," she began, then purposefully distracted herself by staring at the new pieces of furniture he'd brought in. They weren't always real, or even that great to look at, but she always seemed mesmerized by them, like they were made of gold. She was a sucker for furniture, he figured.

"Go on," he urged, leaning against the wall. He tried to keep his composure, but greed was a part of who he was, and when somebody had something he wanted, he couldn't keep his annoyance back. In this case, Kicks had something he longed for.

The cat turned to look at him, remembering his presence, then cleared her throat, nodding. "I, um... I think we should talk. I mean, things got kind of awkward after... well... you know... and I feel bad leaving things like that."

Redd immediately realized Kicks must've told her to come; she would never have approached him on her own, oblivious as she was. "There's nothing to say," he grumbled bitterly, without intending to. She studied him for a moment, then sighed.

"Look, I'm sorry, okay? But you came out of nowhere with that stuff. You spent however long picking on me, and expected me to get something like that? I-I was just surprised... and when you told me you loved me, I thought you were kidding, but then it registered that you weren't. So, I..." His ears perked up at this, and he got a more attentive, curious expression.

"What are you saying?"

Katrina recoiled a bit. "I-I don't know..." She went back to staring at the furniture, quietly. She could already tell what his silent gaze was asking her, though she knew he probably didn't want to vocalize it. "Kicks and I are still going to the fireworks festival together." For a moment his face fell, but he caught it and went back to being nonchalant. It didn't matter – she'd noticed. "He kissed me last night."

Redd just stared at her, his emotion unreadable on his face. A long, unbearably awkward silent passed on between them, before he nodded slowly, walking towards her. "Congratulations, he's a real catch." An easy smiled weaved it's way onto his face, that of a joking one, and he leaned down to match her height snickering. "But just a kiss?"

She almost hit him, which caused him to laugh good-naturedly, before he gently pushed her to the door. "Have fun, okay? I'll be there to get a fortune from you, too, so you better have an answer for me this time around! And try not to embarrass yourself in front of him by falling in the fountain." This time, Katrina did try to round on him, but wasn't able to before the door closed between them. Fuming slightly, she growled, huffing.

"He is SO childish!" She crossed her arms, then fell quiet. He was so okay with it all... like he wasn't affected at all. Had he really been joking? Did she just make an idiot out of herself? Stepping back from the suddenly quiet door slowly, to make her way to the bus stop, she caught a glimpse of black-and-white fur running up to meet her, smiling brightly. She quickly returned the gesture. "Hi there, Kicks."

"Katrina!" He smiled, then followed her path with his gaze, landing on Redd's door. He fell quiet. "You spoke to him? Is he...?"

"He's okay," she said quickly, lacing in fake relief. Kicks studied her for a minute, then his expression softened. It partially made her heart melt, but the other half still ached. He leaned down and kissed her cheek, then grabbed ahold of her paw lightly.

"Let's wide the bus together, okay? That way if Kapp'n cwashes, we'll at least be together."

How could she deny him anything?

* * *

**Obviously, this was a set-up chapter. Hence why it was so short with a large time-gap. I call it a mini domino effect. Decisions made in this chapter (and a few previous chapters) will now topple over into the... big... FINALE! (Also, because of that, it'll be much, much longer than this one was.)**

**Here's some super exciting news for you: the final chapter will be posted up either tomorrow or next weekend depending on my beta reader (so urge her to get the job done!). Along with that big finale will also be the first chapter to the spin-off story that follows Her Crystal Ball. So if I get it up by tomorrow, you'll basically be getting a double update, plus a whole new story. x]**

**All decisions are made on my part. I know what will happen at the end of this, I know what will happen at the beginning of it's 'sequel,' and I'm ready to get writing!**

**Thank you for reading and reviewing.~ We're so close, guys!**

**-Matron of Madness.**


	19. Falling

_I don't own Animal Crossing, or it's characters!_

* * *

–  
Saturday  
Morning Hours  
Carniven City  
–

* * *

Katrina had never, in her small time working there, seen so many animals piled together in the city square. Sure, there'd been a lot when they threw Harriet a party, but this was just ridiculous. "Maybe it's a good thing that I emptied out my shop last night," she said aloud, cringing at the loud chattering of the animals, and single human, she reminded herself. Events were already setting up, despite the festival not starting for another thirteen hours. Why people started getting ready for something that didn't happen until ten that night, she'd never know.

Then again, she supposed it was similar to Halloween. Which would be coming up after the fireworks festival, actually... It wasn't the Fourth of July – in fact, they didn't even really have a reason to be setting these things off. Just boredom, she guessed, during the gap between holidays.

Sighing, she shook her head and made her way into the empty shop she'd gotten so used to, taking a last look to make sure she wasn't forgetting anything, save the stuff she would leave there overnight and pick up in the morning. She wasn't even going to try to cart that stuff back to her hotel after festivities ended. They'd probably get smashed while she tried to get on the bus.

Walking over to the wall, she slid down to sit and grabbed the small notebook she'd left to take names of people who got fortunes. Flipping through the mostly empty pages, as it was brand new, she went to the back, then grabbed a pencil and started drawing on the last page. Brief images of that symbol came to her mind; now that she knew what it meant, the mystery was taken out of it. It didn't bother her anymore, but for some reason, she almost missed the planning and scheming to figure the whole thing out.

Tracing it's outline onto the page, she started to fill in the details, her paw steady, despite not being the best artist in the world. Even without color pencils to top it off, it still resembled it in her eyes. It was more than a save point, really. It was a kind of beacon for fate, one beyond even a fortune teller's understanding. The future could be seen, sometimes minds could be read, but some things just didn't seem in her reach any longer.

She smiled at that thought, shaking her head slowly. "Maybe it's best to let it retain it's value," she muttered, continuing to detailed the lines of the picture. For a moment, she allowed herself to think back to the first time she saw it, when giving Redd his love fortune. Had that been the first time? Or had she just never noticed it before?

Why had no one else seen it, until they knew to look for it?

Her head tilted to the side. She stopped her work, sliding down further against the wall. How did they come to start looking for it in the first place?

* * *

–

"I'm a little surprised," Redd's thoughts were interrupted by a familiar, kind-hearted voice. He turned around from putting the 'sale' price tags on his wares for the night and raised his eyebrow in a silent inquiry. Kicks stood off to the side, watching him awkwardly, before dipping his hat in greeting. "I half expected to be hit in the back of the head with one of your couches after last night. But it's been and hour since I got here, and I'm awright."

The fox nodded slowly, motioning towards the couch. "I could still arrange for that, if you really want me to... You seem disappointed." He smirked, noticing the other flinch expectantly. Really, though, he kept his teasing to a minimum. At least for that day, he would allow himself to be somewhat kinder to the people around him. That way it'd make it twice more fun when he started poking fun at them again. "What are you going to do when Kat leaves tomorrow morning?"

Kicks shook his head, playing with the tip of his hat. "We... said we'd work that out in time. I don't want to stop her from going. It's what she wants."

"You and Labelle are polar opposites," he grumbled, sighing loudly. "No wonder she chose you; she needed stability." He paused for a moment, then snickered at the blank stare he got. "I'm kidding, I'm kidding. You take everything so seriously. Well, I wish the two of you luck. You with shoe-shining, and her with no falling face-first off of every bus she gets onto!"

Redd let out a hardy laugh, yet Kicks remained quiet. After a second, he spoke once more, "Do you really love her?"

Taken aback by the question, the fox in question stared at him dumb-found, then raised his hand up and coughed awkwardly. Something flashed in his eyes, but a smile came to his face. "No. I was just teasing her... about everything."

"I see." Kicks studied him a moment longer and seemed to catch something even the red fox himself didn't. Bowing his head, he backed up. "I'll see you tonight, Redd... enjoy yourself."

* * *

–

Lyle groaned as Navigale circled around him, a set-off sparkler in her hand. The blue-haired human yelped as the sparks popped off, her face surprisingly pale, as opposed to rosy like her normal self. He took it as a sign she was scared. "Fire! Fire! It's going to burn me, Lyle!"

She kept shaking it like it was wrapped around her arm or something, but didn't let go, as if she were afraid it'd take flight and burn into her hair if she did. Dr. Shrunk was laughing at the top of his lungs beside Labelle, whom stood there staring into space with that look that clearly said 'what have I gotten myself into?' All the other shop owners were helping set up.

"Y-You should just hold it still and it wouldn't go flying everywhere, silly, silly human!" Dr. Shrunk found his voice, the emotion speeches he gave clearly paying off, for Lyle could swear he had never before seen someone look so cheerfully amused.

"But if I do that it'll burn—owww!" Navigale dropped the stick, stomping on it hastily as she sucked on a swollen part of her finger. Lyle shook his head.

"See? This is why children shouldn't play with fire. Bang."

"Who ydou callinsh a childsh?" Navigale snapped, voice muffled by her finger, as she refused to let it out until it felt better. Dr. Shrunk went back into his laughing fit. Labelle didn't stir at all though, and Lyle noticed that. Leaving the human and axolotl together to continue their childish actions of sorts, he made his way over to the porcupine, leaning down.

"Something bothering you, young'un? Bang. You're not old enough to be stressed."

Labelle blinked at his words, then shook her head. "Oh, no, no! I'm not bothered by anything, just nervous." She laughed heartily, waving her paws in front of her face. Lyle was quiet for a moment, then got a knowing look, smirking at her. She twitched her ear and groaned. "What's that look for?"

"Nothing, nothing. Have fun working at Tom's though. I here he's a tough boss. Bang."

* * *

–  
Saturday  
Night Hours  
Carniven City  
–

* * *

Slowly, one by one, lights started to come on outside. Katrina could see them lighting up from outside her window as she put the last detail on yet another sketch of the symbol. It was the last bit of beauty she'd have from the place. Standing up, she tore out the few pages she'd doodled on and opened one of the now empty desks drawers. Staring at the dusty insides, she carefully folded the papers and wrote Labelle's name on the front of them. Afterwards, she put it into the drawer, stepping back when she was done.

"It's your turn now," she muttered, some kind of amusement in her voice. She'd had a visit earlier from Tom Nook, while she was drawing. She supposed no one saw him come in, and she wasn't surprised. He was a slippery raccoon. Sighing, she smiled and turned, grabbing her headdress and crystal ball. It would be her last time working in the city, at least until she made her next round.

Walking out the door, she hurried over to the stand that had been set up for her, getting the crystal ball set into place. Her work took so little set up compared to the others, to the point it kind of made her realize how light-weight of a job it was. She laughed at the thought, then sat down. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the buses start arriving to bring more animals; Kicks wasn't among them yet, having told her he needed to run to the center of the city quickly.

Her mind didn't wander for long, as she was soon onslaught with costumers, all of which she assumed knew she wouldn't be for them much longer. Putting on her mystic expression, she brought her paw up and waved one forward, a mysterious smile on her features. "What fortune is it you would like tonight?"

* * *

–

She knew running a business was hard work, but geez, Katrina didn't realize how many costumers she actually had. Before anymore could come up to her, she pushed herself out of the chair, sighing exasperatedly. Walking to the fountain, she watched the sky. It was almost eleven, at which point the fireworks would finally be shot off for however many minutes straight. Most people were meeting up with their dates, friends, or family for that particular event.

She'd seen Kicks come back a while ago, but he graciously let her have her space, probably aware of how busy she was. That did make her feel a tad bit bad, but all-in-all, she was glad that that part of it was all done with.

"Katrina!" Ever on time, she supposed. Kicks bounded up to her side, nearly running into her. He had to grab onto her arm to keep from falling, his cheeks tinting red from beneath his fur. She smiled down at him, desperately holding back a laugh so she didn't come off as rude.

"Hi there, Kicks. Glad to see you made it back in one piece, what with Kapp'n being the driver all night." Both of them broke out into laughter at that, knowing full well how he got on days like this. He was bad on normal days, but when it went on this late, and he had to dodge people going across the streets twenty-four-seven, he might as well be blind, deaf, and buried ten feet under the ground driving that bus.

They both calmed down after a minute or two, taking a seat on the already crowded fountain. People were finding anything and everything to sit on and watch the show, be it the bushes, the ground, chairs... anything worked. Staring up at the sky, Kicks pressed tightly against her side due to being squished by others all around, both of them said not a word to one-another, entranced as the first whistle went off. Everyone in the square went silent until the first boom. Colors exploded did the sky, as did the screams and cheers of some animals.

She had always been the quiet type, though.

One another the after, no break in between, they started to go off, leaving traces of rainbows in the darkened night sky as colors mixed together, falling to the ground as embers. Each time they went off, her heart exploded, and yet there was something holding back. It wasn't just her, though; Kicks didn't look at her. He was thoughtful, lost in a trance of some sort, just the same way she was.

What was he thinking about? What was she thinking about? Were they contemplating good things, bad things? Why didn't she know her own thoughts?

She saw a red flash of fur move through the crowd to get closer in the front, and her eyes immediately locked on him. Redd stared up at the sky with lively, curious eyes, genuinely enjoying the show as a girl, whom looked like Navigale, bounded around him, idiotic smile in place.

Her heart sank suddenly. What was he doing with her? Wasn't Navigale supposed to be with Genji? ...Why did she suddenly care?

Kicks watched her, and she knew it, but she didn't say anything. After a moment passed, she felt a paw weave its way into hers, then he grew closer, his lips gently grazing her cheek. It was the softest kiss she'd ever received, and it always would be. She knew that. But it made her heart feel even more heavy when he spoke in a sincere, understanding tone. "You should go, Miss Katrina..."

Again with the 'Miss'...

Slowly turning to look at him, his eyes were sad, yet at the same time, happy, creating a sort of bittersweet look on his always kind-hearted features. She didn't have to ask him what he meant, and the stunned silence gave him all the answer he needed.

He drew her forward again, kissing her forehead in the same manner. "I'll be awright. Weally. So... go on..." He stood up, using his grip on her paw to gently pull her up with him. They stood there silently for a moment, before she opened her mouth, looking for any kind of way to apologize to him, but he silenced her before she got a chance, with his still friendly smile.

Without another word, he tipped his hat, bowing down with the motion. Keeping her paw in his for a moment, he squeezed it hesitantly, then stood up straight. "Have a nice night, Miss Katrina. If you're ever around the city sometime soon... come see me, okay?" With that, he finally released her, turning and disappearing into the thick of the crowd. Even with the facade of knowing he'd be okay, seeing his hurt was so easy...

Blinking stupidly, not exactly sure what had just happened there, Katrina took a step back, almost running into Dr. Shrunk in the process. The entertainer looked up at her and smiled brightly before going about his business, leaving her to be confused on her own. Without realizing it, as the cheering grew louder and the fireworks more persistent, her legs were carrying her towards Redd and Navigale. It wasn't until she reached out to grab ahold of his shoulder that she froze, her eyes widening.

What was she doing?

He noticed her, despite that, and turned to face her and her outstretched paw. He seemed confused at first, then worried. "Eh? Something wrong in love land?" he teased, a smirk working it's way onto his features. Katrina drew her paw back quickly, but didn't attempt a glare or quick quip as per usual when she was teased. Instead, she just stared at him.

"Why you?" She asked aloud suddenly, shaking her head. His ear twitched, and he regained a semi-serious expression. Navigale was staring at them off to the side, like it was some kind of movie.

"Huh?" He blinked.

"Of all the animals I could have... Kicks is perfect... you're just..." She babbled to herself under her breath, Redd straining to hear what she was saying over all the noise. She looked up at him, then turned and pushed through the crowd quickly, making her way towards the bus stop as the fireworks reached their grand finale.

Redd, surprised, followed after her, whom was followed by a very nosy human. "Katrina! Wait!" He seemed genuinely concerned for once, and that made her feel even worse. She kept pushing, until there were enough animals between them to give her a head start. She ran down the stairs to the square, never more glad to see Kapp'n there, waiting. Practically jumping onto the bus, she hastily made her way to the back, plopping down at the farthest seat possible. Hectic eyes staring out the window, she heard the bus doors close. Redd emerged from the crowd, panting, and locked gazes with her.

He mouthed her name, then tilted his head curiously. She felt her heart speed up as the bus took off.

* * *

–  
Sunday  
The Final Hour – Morning  
Carniven City  
–

* * *

Katrina rushed into her shop, grabbed her items, which she could tell Kicks had put back into the shop for her due to the neat way it was stacked, and hauled her tail right back out. She had to get going, and fast. A new bus driver, a lot more safe than Kapp'n, sat at the stop, waiting for her to get everything together. He was a penguin, pretty friendly so far, and had been rented off with her bells from last night to get there early for her departure. "I'm almost done. Just gotta say a few momentary goodbyes," the cat grunted, setting her stuff down in one of the chairs. The crystal ball was packed the safest, the most secure.

That was also Kicks doing, and for a moment, she felt her heart break.

The penguin nodded in understanding. "It's hard to say goodbye. Take your time, I've got enough to spare, myself." He smiled at her and that lifted her spirits slightly. It was like she was making a new friend again... she missed that from traveling. Sure, you met people in Carniven. But it was always the same people.

"Thanks, Kaph. I'll be back in a second." She hopped off the bus and immediately made her way to Lyle's; she'd agreed to see him and Labelle off personally. She'd said her farewells to the others already, having caught them walking in to their shops. All except Redd, anyways.

Both of them were there; Labelle looked dead tired, for reasons Katrina would whether not ask about, and Lyle looked like he was about to kill her. Again, for reasons she didn't want to ask about. When she approached, though, a solemn happiness took them all over. The porcupine was the first to run and throw her arms around the cat, sniffling uncontrollably.

"Don't leave me with this prune!" She whined, sobbing loudly. She wasn't actually crying, though. Katrina knew she was a drama queen. Lyle came out from behind the counter and stood in front of her, pushing Labelle off to the side, which displeased the girl greatly. As evidenced by her pout.

"It's going to be a lot less exciting without you around. Bang. No more symbols to chase after, no more people to stalk..."

"I thought you said it wasn't stalking? You said it was just research." Katrina smiled brightly at him, tilting her head.

"No, no. We were stalking them. Bang." The faintest hint of a smile flickered on the stern otter's face, before he became a bit more serious. "You take care, kid. Don't want 'Ole Lyle to have to come find you and knock some sense into you if you get in trouble. Because I'll do it. Bang."

"I'll hold you to that." Katrina pat him on the shoulder, knowing he wasn't exactly the sentimental type. He grunted in appreciation, then went behind the counter again, stubbornly. Labelle took that as a chance to latch onto her friend again, and it continued that way for a long while.

Knowing she had to go eventually, she laughed and tried to get the porcupine's mind off of it. "Why don't you tell me how your time was at the festival?"

* * *

–

Katrina turned around, taking a last look at the city, before stepping up into the bus. Kaph smiled at her, patiently, and she got the impression he knew what it was like to suddenly move to a different place. She was going to like him, she could already tell. "I think I'm ready to go..." She nodded, turning to get out of the way of the door, when the sound of pawsteps caught her attention. Before she could even turn around to see who it was, a paw gripped the end of her skirt, holding her in place.

"Wait!"

The cat's eyes widened as she recognized the voice. Slowly, her form turned around so that she was looking down at the animal in front of her. His hand slid up from her skirt, taking ahold of the paw she had still clutched on the door. "You were really going to leave without saying anything to me? For shame!"

"Redd..."

The fox's voice was the same as ever, teasing and mocking, yet his eyes were so serious, even she had a hard time looking at him. "So you're really going, huh? Off to travel the world again? You won't have any competition. Well, at least, not any that can top me!" He smirked smugly, but she remained quiet, staring at him with impatient eyes. She wanted to leave. Now.

Kaph was being patient, though, minding his own business. She wished he'd close the bus doors.

Seeming to understand her silence, Redd sighed. "You're no fun..." Keeping her paw in his, he stepped up on the first step of the bus, regaining his height advantage over her. He was close. She squeaked and tried to wiggle away from him, but an arm around her waist prevented that. They stared at each-other for a moment, then he spoke again. "Navigale talked to Kicks last night about what happened. She came and told me afterwards."

"Of course she did," Katrina grumbled, cursing the human in her mind. Redd wasn't taking a chance at joking now, though, as a serious demeanor she'd never seen before took him over.

"Katrina, are you in love with me?" The question obvious caught her off guard, for she went completely shell-shocked for several moments, until Redd began to wonder if she was actually breathing. When he didn't get an answer, which basically gave him his answer anyways, his gaze narrowed thoughtfully. "Do you regret it?"

"..." She studied him, no longer caring that they were one step to falling out of the bus door. "No, I don't," she muttered finally, shaking her head. She looked down, embarrassed. She would lay money on that sign being somewhere around her, but she didn't look. She didn't need to see it to know this was one of the most special moments of her life.

Redd nodded slowly, then regained his teasing smile. "You still didn't give me my love fortune from last night, or rather, from all those weeks ago. Can I have it now? I paid you, you know." Without looking up, she nodded, and he took that as his cue. He released her paw and rested his under her chin, forcing her head up so she could look at him. He sighed. "You're really dense, kitty cat." She didn't have the energy to snap back at him, which seemed to happen more often, but it didn't matter anyways. Before she got the chance, his lips captured hers, and that time, it wasn't just a sweet moment. She felt everything she was supposed to; the heart skip, the urge to cry, the urge to break out laughing at the irony of it all.

He was the first one she'd noticed the symbol in. And he was the last one she noticed in her heart. She didn't know how that worked out, but it was perfect, at least for that moment. His paw found hers again, both holding onto her out of affection, and for a prop that kept him from falling backwards onto the road.

Redd parted the kiss, smirking triumphantly. Usually, that was a look that made her want to hit him, but now it made her want to hit him with affection. There was a difference. "Say it, Kat."

Katrina stared at him, then understood. Her expression dropped to a shy one, but for once, her oblivious mind clicked into play about what was actually going on. "I love you."

At this rate, she was beginning to believe that... perhaps visiting Carniven City more than 'once in a while' was a good thing to do. She didn't have to see the world; she could still stick close. Travel to distant cities, sure... but always close enough... to her friends. To him. To her home.

The triumph on his features only grew, as if he knew what she was thinking. "I love you, too. I've been loving you, but you were just too oblivious to see it..." As he leaned in to kiss her again, Kaph at this point hiding his face awkwardly in a magazine, she heard Redd's voice whisper upon her lips; "Just don't ever forget who said it first..."

To think it'd all started with him, her, the promise of a love fortune, and _her crystal ball_.

**Her Crystal Ball: End.**

* * *

**My first long-fic to be completed... I'm so proud. :)**

**I seriously can't thank you all enough for reviewing, and hopefully really enjoying, this story. Before anyone throws anything at me, I'm a sucker for both pairings, and anyone who enjoys Kicks can rest in peace, because there will more than likely be some Katrina/Kicks one-shots from me in the future. XD (Not connected to this story at all, of course.) Same with Redd/Katrina, so don't think you're left out just because you won. :P**

**The first chapter to the "spin-off" from this story is already written and posted up. And since I know you all are just _dying _for details -cough-, I'll give you some here. The story's title is His Bag of Bells, and if you didn't manage to catch on to my hints throughout the last few chapters of this... yes, it will be Tom/Labelle. Instead of following the confused, oblivious girl around, our main lead for the story will be the greedy raccoon. It takes place during the very end of HCB, and goes beyond the events of it, after Katrina has left to travel. Basically, the first chapter picks up during the fireworks festival, then continues the day after. (It fills in a couple of obviously missing conversations from this chapter, as well as filling in what happens with Kicks afterwards.)**

**That's all I'm telling you. If you're interested, I hope to hear from you over on that story's reviews.**

**But, as for Her Crystal Ball, I bring it to a close.**

**Again, thank you for sticking with me. I wouldn't have got it done without all the support, and I hope this last chapter pleases you, regardless of the pairing you were fighting for. :3**

**-Matron of Madness.**

**P.S. Wonder who the big/support characters are in His Bag of Bells? Well, here you go!: Tom, Labelle, Tom's nephews, Navigale, Dr. Shrunk, Kicks, Redd, Cube, Genji, Kapp'n, Resseti, Camofrog, and of course, Lyle. :D**

**P.S.S. I respond to all reviews given on my final chapters, so don't be surprised if you review and finally hear from me directly. 8D**


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